The Tamil Nadu High Court has dismissed petitions filed by the Tamil Nadu State Marketing Corporation (TASMAC) and the Tamil Nadu government challenging the Enforcement Directorate’s (ED) raids conducted on March 6-8, 2025, at TASMAC’s headquarters and associated premises.
The court’s ruling, delivered by Justices S.M. Subramaniam and K. Rajasekar, was in favour of the ED’s actions. They were considered legal uunder the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA).
The ED raids targeted the alleged financial irregularities at TASMAC. The TASMAC is Tamil Nadu’s state-run liquor retailer. The raids uncovered what the agency described as “serious financial fraud” involving distilleries and bottling entities.
The ED drew accusations that large-scale corruption was carried out at the TASMAC including tender manipulation, unaccounted cash transactions, and overpricing of liquor bottles and reportedly causing losses exceeding ₹1,000 crore. The ED has claimed to have evidence of collusion between TASMAC officials and distilleries. They have even found evidence of intentional inflated operational costs and unexplainable illicit payments.
The Tamil Nadu government and TASMAC argued that the ED’s raids were unlawful. They claimed them to be violations of federalism and alleging political motivations. According to them, the searches were conducted without state consent and infringed on state autonomy.
The State government has come forth with accusations of harrasment against the TASMAC employees, with some detained for over 60 hours. The state’s aim was to declare the raids illegal and prevent further ED action.
However, the court has rejected their arguments, stating that money laundering is a “crime against the people” and that public interest is economic justice and greatly outweighs minor inconveniences caused during raids. They even dismissed claims of political bias. AIADMK leader Edappadi K.
Palaniswami criticized the ruling DMK government for opposing the ED’s probe, questioning their resistance to uncovering alleged scams. The DMK, in turn, accused the central government of targeting state institutions for political vendettas.
