[taesrom]

A special police team arrested senior DMK leader and former higher education minister K. Ponmudy and secretary of the Thanthai Periyar transport corporation cooperative housing society Shanthi here on Wednesday on charges of forcibly acquiring land meant for employees of the corporation.
Mr Ponmudy is the fourth former DMK minister after Veerapandi S. Arumugam (Salem), K.N. Nehru (Tiruchy) and N.K.K.P. Raja (Erode) to be arrested on land-grabbing charges.

According to police sources, Mr Ponmudy and Ms Shanthi were arrested following a complaint from AIADMK trade union wing leader and Thanthai Periyar residents welfare association president Narayanasamy.

Mr Narayanasamy complained that Mr Ponmudy forcibly grabbed 61,600 square feet of land at Thanthai Periyar Nagar (behind Villupuram transport corporation bus depot) which was originally meant for laying of parks and other amenities for the employees.

Mr Narayanasamy alleged that Mr Ponmudy acquired the land in 2007 and transferred it to his relatives' SIGA educational trust.

Acting on the complaint, a police team, led by Villupuram anti-land grabbing cell DSP J. Jaya raj and town DSP G. Sekar, arrested Mr Ponmudy at his Shanmugapuram colony residence here around 2.15 p.m. Ms Shanthi was taken into custody later.

Cases have been registered against Mr Ponmudy, Ms Shanthi and the absconding trustees of SIGA trust Manivannan and Saraswathi (motherin-law of Mr Ponmudy).

High drama preceded the arrest as DMK cadres protested the police action. Ex-DMK minister's aide escapes Allnath, an aide of the former minister Anitha Radhakrishnan, made a daring escape from the GH in Tiruchy on Wednesday.

Three prison warders were suspended by the DIG (prisons) on charge of being slack during duty hours.