The Madras High Court on September 18 deferred a bail plea filed by Karthik of Karur, one of seven accused in the TASMAC corruption case, after the police sought time to respond. The court listed the matter for further hearing on September 25.
The case relates to alleged irregularities in several areas of the Tamil Nadu State Marketing Corporation’s operations, including bar tenders, procurement, a proposed or collected charge of ₹10 per bottle, transport tenders, employee appointments and party funds. The Directorate of Vigilance and Anti-Corruption has registered a case against seven people, including former minister V. Senthil Balaji and IAS officer Visagan.
According to the report, Senthil Balaji has been named as the first accused and Visagan as the second accused. The other accused are former TASMAC senior regional manager Ramadurai Murugan, R. Panneer Selvam, Senthil Balaji’s personal assistant Bhaskar, his associate Rathesh Raj and Karthik. The case has been registered under nine provisions, including provisions of the Prevention of Corruption Act.
Karthik approached the High Court seeking bail for the second time. During the hearing before Justice V. Lakshminarayanan, his side argued that the police had already taken him into custody for four days for questioning but had not seized anything. On that basis, the defence sought his release on bail.
The judge questioned whether an accused arrested in a corruption case was attempting to seek sympathy, according to the report. The observation came during consideration of the renewed bail request and did not conclude the application. The police sought additional time to file their response, and the court accepted the request.
The proceedings highlight the role of the court in examining custody and bail requests while the investigation continues. They also bring several operational areas of a state-run liquor distribution system into the legal process, including contracting, procurement, logistics and staffing. The supplied report does not indicate that the court has reached a finding on the allegations against any of the accused.
TASMAC is a state-controlled liquor retailing and distribution system in Tamil Nadu, making the case relevant to public administration and the oversight of government-linked commercial operations. The allegations, as described in the case, cover multiple functions rather than a single transaction, but the report does not provide the alleged financial value of the irregularities or the investigation’s overall timeline.
The High Court will hear Karthik’s bail plea again on September 25 after receiving the police response. The court’s next order will determine the immediate status of the second bail application.
