A KEY issue in the elections to the legislative assembly in Tamilnadu, for which polling will take place on May 16, is the monumental scale of corruption under successive DMK and AIADMK regimes. The election campaign of the alliance of six parties – DMDK led by Vijayakanth, the four parties of the People’s Welfare Front(PWF), namely MDMK, CPI(M), CPI and VCK, and the Tamil Maanila Congress(TMC) led by GK Vasan – has highlighted the issue of corruption under the regimes of AIADMK and DMK sharply and with great clarity. In an important press conference on April 23, G Ramakrishnan, Polit Bureau member and secretary of the Tamilnadu state committee of the CPI(M), released details of the staggering granite scam running into more than a lakh crore rupees in which both the DMK and the AIADMK are implicated.

GENESIS OF THE

GRANITE SCAM

A public interest litigation was filed in 2012 concerning illegal quarrying of mines in 32 districts of Tamilnadu, based on a report sent to the government in May 2012 by U Sagayam, an IAS officer known for his integrity, which exposed illegal granite quarrying in Madurai district that caused the government an estimated loss of Rs 16,338 crores. Acting on the PIL, the High Court issued an order on September 11, 2014 appointing Sagayam as special officer to visit and inspect the mines, initially in Madurai district, and submit a report to the court. Sagayam has since completed his work and submitted the report which has not been made public so far. However, some startling details relating to what the report contains have now come into public view. These make it clear that the scam involving illegal mining of granite mines by some powerful lessees in Madurai district alone has caused the state loss of revenue exceeding one lakh crore rupees. This loss is only one dimension of multiple losses and havoc caused by the huge scam.

The AIADMK government took no action on Sagayam’s earlier report of 2012 that provided the basis for the PIL until the contents of the report were exposed by a television channel (Puthiya Talaimurai). Subsequent to the expose, the government had to take action. Some mining leases were cancelled based on the recommendations of the district collector and an appearance that the government was serious about taking action was created. However, soon everything fell silent and illegal mining continued as before.

MASSIVE SCAM,

MULTIPLE DIMENSIONS

A total of 175 mining leases and operations based on them have been examined by the Sagayam Commission. These relate to the period from 1991 to 2011. Between 1991 and 2002, 36 government orders granting leases were issued. The number swelled to 139 between 2003 and 2011. The AIADMK government sanctioned 77 leases between 2001 and 2006 and the DMK 68 between 2006 and 2011. It may be recalled that Alagiri, the DMK strongman from Madurai, was a union minister from 2006 to 2010. The mining lessees against whom cases have been booked so far for illegal mining and other offences include Olympus Granites in which Alagiri’s son was a shareholder, PRP Exports, a big player, and several others. It is clear that the big mining lessees were politically powerful persons with considerable influence in both the DMK and the AIADMK.

Sagayam’s Report, it is understood, has also documented the involvement of the bureaucracy at all levels in the scam. Political leaders, bureaucrats at different levels and mining barons all seem to have been hand-in-glove partners in the scam.

Apart from revenue and resources lost from illegal mining, the actions of the scamsters have led to many other harmful consequences. Agriculture has been badly affected in the villages where illegal mining has been going on unchecked under the benign protection of the DMK and the AIADMK regimes. Water bodies have not only been illegally appropriated by the big mining lessees, they have also been contaminated heavily with granite blocks being stored in them and in other ways. Important archaeological monuments have been damaged by mining carried out in brazen violation of norms relating to the distance of quarrying sites from archaeological sites.

The scam has involved several illegal activities. In all cases, more granite has been mined than was permitted under the terms of the lease. Electricity connections have been obtained violating the rules in force. The water sucked out by the quarries – many of them illegally mined – has destroyed the access to irrigation water for many peasants, and as a consequence, a number of them have had to sell their land under distress conditions at very low prices. Many families have had to leave villages in search of livelihood after the destruction of their farm lands on account of illegal quarrying. The mining barons have employed several strategies to grab the lands of the peasants. Very powerful explosives have been used to damage their houses. Access to roads has been blocked by dumping granite mining wastes all round their settlements. Women from families that resisted the land grab have been taunted and teased. False cases have been filed against those who opposed the illegal activities of the mining lessees. The government not only did not bring to book the mining barons, but in many instances are reported to have abetted them in their anti-people activities.

Even a settlement created for the police force was not spared. A layout at Jangid Nagar comprising 425 housing plots was allotted for police constables. Four constables built houses on the sites allotted to them, but were forced to abandon their sites after powerful blasts from quarries near the area operated by a major mining lessee severely damaged their houses. One constable died of shock in the process. The affected members of the police force not only did not get support from government for proceeding legally against the mining lessee, but were actually threatened and told to leave.

Temples as well as pathways to temples and farm lands have also been destroyed by illegal mining, with the collusion of concerned officials. Flora and fauna have been negatively impacted, with consequent ecological damage and irreparable damage to the local bio-system. Sagayam Report, it is learnt, has also drawn attention to the health impacts resulting from environmental degradation caused by illegal mining violating all rules of safety and preservation of habitats, built structures and ecology. The sharp rise in the incidence of dengue in some of the villages devastated by illegal granite mining seems to be a case in point.

LAND GRAB & FLOUTING

OF LAND CEILINGS

A major mining lessee, PRP Granites, has accumulated huge amounts of land over the last several years in Madurai district and elsewhere in the state using its massive surpluses from legal and illegal mining, and using a variety of ethically dubious strategies. It is learnt that the Sagayam Report states that M/s PRP Granites had purchased lands to the extent of 20,000 acres in Madurai and Theni districts alone, in stark violation of Land Ceilings Acts in force in the state. It is suspected that such massive acquisition of lands may have been partly for purposes of exploring mineral resources underneath these lands.

TAX

EVASION

Through a variety of methods, such as setting up bogus firms, the big mining lessees have defrauded the state exchequer of large amounts of tax revenue that should have accrued to the government. Commercial tax evasion on a large scale has occurred. Even the state owned company TAMIN seems to have been a partner in some of these activities. The other area of depriving the state of its legitimate share of revenue has been in relation to export of granite blocks and raw granite as well. The revenue losses to the government, including penalty leviable, are estimated to be around Rs 1.12 lakh crore in Madurai district alone.

Numerous laws and rules in force with regard to mining have been violated with impunity by the big lessees. Violation of as many as 79 rules of this kind has been documented by Sagayam in his report. Whistle blowers and public-spirited persons who tried to bring the illegal activities to the attention of the public and the government have been attacked and harassed in many ways, with some being subjected to grave physical assaults.

AIADMK, DMK REGIMES

SQUARELY RESPONSIBLE

Ramakrishnan pointed out in his press conference, and in a note circulated there, that the AIADMK and DMK governments bear full responsibility for this mega scam. The CPI(M) and the PWF have been highlighting the granite scam. Ramkrishnan has repeatedly posed the question of the scam and the role of both the DMK and the AIADMK in it. But the two major Dravidian parties, who have nowhere to hide in this matter, have been deliberately ignoring the questions posed and the massive expose. Their silence is part of the tactics of both parties – a kind of match fixing – whereby they pretend that only they are in the fray and the DMDK –PWF – TMC alliance does not exist. This reflects a state of panic in the ranks of these two parties who were so confident that such a credible formation as the DMDK –PWF – TMC would never emerge in this election.

Given the role of the DMK and the AIADMK in the mega granite scam, it is clear that if either of them forms the next government, there will be a swift and complete cover-up, and the scamsters will go scot-free. The state will continue to lose lakhs of crores of rupees of revenue and the plunder of the natural resources will go on unhindered, with serious consequences for the people and the environmental health of the state. It is very important, therefore, that both the DMK and the AIADMK are defeated in the elections.

It is quite some time since the Sagayam Report was submitted to the High Court. In the interest of transparency, the High Court should put out the report in the public domain as suggested by G Ramakrishnan.  A multi-disciplinary special investigation team (SIT) of CBI officials chosen by the High Court should be constituted to go into all aspects of the mega granite scam to bring out the facts and bring the guilty to book.  This inquiry should be under the direct supervision of the High Court. The inquiry should cover areas such as lease procedures, deviations, transport violations, tax evasion, export fraud and so on. Special Courts may be constituted to bring all the guilty to justice and award suitable punishments. Special public prosecutors may also be appointed for this purpose. All those affected by illegal granite mining, such as the displaced peasants and agricultural labourers, the affected police personnel and others whose houses and property including livestock have been damaged and so on should all be properly compensated. One lakh and 62,000 granite blocks that have been seized from the mining lessees who have violated various laws and rules and other conditions of lease can be used to raise the resources necessary to rehabilitate all those affected.

On a wider plane, there is an urgent need to constitute Lok Ayuktha with powers to interrogate the chief minister and all other officials. Anti-corruption agencies need to be strengthened. There should be complete transparency in the functioning of the government. The Common Minimum Programme (CMP) of the PWF has made important commitments along these lines. The CMP has also pledged to carry out comprehensive implementation of Land Ceilings Acts, and will seize all lands illegally acquired by the mining barons for distribution to rightful claimants and the landless families.

The granite scam, though of huge proportions by itself, is only the tip of the iceberg. During the DMK–AIADMK regimes, river sand, mineral sands and all natural resources have been plundered by unscrupulous mafia elements with the full cooperation of both parties. All scams relating to the appropriation and exploitation of natural resources will be thoroughly investigated by the DMDK-PWF-TMC combine if it is voted to office.

The popular response to the campaign of the DMDK-PWF-TMC alliance, which is focusing on both its positive agenda for the state and the corrupt misrule of the DMK and the AIADMK over several decades now, has been highly enthusiastic. The electorate of Tamilnadu is all set to surprise the arm chair political pundits who are unable to see beyond the DMK and the AIADMK.