A special court for anti-corruption cases in Chennai on Monday, November 2, granted the Central Crime Branch (CCB) of the Chennai Police police custody of former Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) school education minister Anbil Mahesh Poyyamozhi for detailed interrogation in the alleged private-school recognition case. The custody runs from 1:00 PM on Monday through the evening of November 4, and the CCB has been directed to produce him before the court at 5:00 PM on November 5.

Source: Nation Press

The court mandated a medical examination before questioning begins, prohibited any physical or mental coercion, and permitted an advocate representing Mahesh to be present during the interrogation, according to the report. The Federal also reported that Mahesh would remain in police custody till November 4.

Source: The Federal (YouTube shorts)

Nov 4Police custody granted till
1:00 PM, Nov 2Custody period began
5:00 PM, Nov 5To be produced before the court
Oct 26Arrested by the CCB

The custody order follows the earlier developments in the case, which Awaaz Punjab has been reporting: Mahesh was arrested by the CCB on October 26, hours after the Madras High Court rejected his anticipatory bail plea, and a special court then remanded him to judicial custody at Puzhal Central Jail through November 6. The CCB had sought five days of police custody; Special Judge L. S. Sathyamoorthy had reserved the order on October 30 and listed it for November 2, with special public prosecutor Usha Rani arguing that custodial interrogation was essential to the investigation.

Source: Mirror Now

The case rests on allegations — which remain unproved — that large sums were collected from private school managements as 'party funds' in exchange for recognition, upgrades and planning approvals routed through the Directorate of Town and Country Planning (DTCP) and the Chennai Metropolitan Development Authority (CMDA). The prosecution has said around Rs 400 crore was collected from 177 victims, according to a Careers360 explainer based on the High Court proceedings; Mahesh was not named in the original FIR, which followed a complaint by D. C. Elangovan, and the case was registered under Sections 316(5), 318(4) and 3(5) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita.

Source: Careers360 News

Mahesh has denied the charges and has alleged political vendetta by the ruling dispensation, Careers360 reported. Police custody is an investigative step, not a finding of guilt, and the allegations will be tested in court as the CCB probe continues.