No Shield for TASMAC: Tamil Nadu Govt. Vows to Cooperate in Liquor Scam Probe

Tamil Nadu Government Assures High Court on TASMAC Probe

The Tamil Nadu government has assured the Madras High Court that it is not attempting to protect TASMAC, the state-owned liquor vending enterprise, in the ongoing ₹1,000 crore liquor scam investigation. This assurance came during a hearing on a PIL seeking a CBI probe into the alleged scam, which is already under scrutiny by the Enforcement Directorate (ED).

Advocate General PS Raman, representing the state government, assured the court that they would not try to circumvent the ED’s investigation by dropping the predicate offense against TASMAC. A predicate offense refers to the underlying crime that triggers an investigation under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA).

Context is Key: Supreme Court Ruling

The Supreme Court has previously ruled in the case of *Pavana Dibbur v. ED* that if a predicate offense is dropped, proceedings under the PMLA cannot be sustained. This ruling highlights the importance of the predicate offense in the ED’s investigation.

High Court’s Concern

The vacation bench comprising Justice GR Swaminathan and Justice V Lakshminarayan expressed reluctance to adjourn the matter, stating that the state government seemed to be aligning itself with TASMAC. The judges raised concerns that if the state were to close all predicate offenses, the PIL would become irrelevant.

State’s Defense

Advocate General Raman refuted the perception that the state was trying to shield TASMAC, arguing that their efforts were aimed at protecting federalism.