ED freezes ₹41.9 crore in fixed deposit held by Ponmudy, son 

ED seizes ₹81.7 lakh in unaccounted-for cash and freezes ₹41.9 crore in fixed deposit held by Higher Education Minister K. Ponmudy and his son, DMK MP Gautham Sigamani. Alleged illegal issuance of licences for red sand mining by Mr. Ponmudy when he served as Minister for Mines between 2007 and 2011. Cash transferred through hawala and used to purchase overseas entities. Seizure of ₹81.7 lakh in unaccounted-for cash and ₹41.9 crore in fixed deposit. ED questioning Mr. Ponmudy and Mr. Sigamani to investigate illegal proceeds from illicit activities.

The Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Tuesday said it had seized ₹81.7 lakh in unaccounted-for cash and froze ₹41.9 crore in fixed deposit held by Higher Education Minister K. Ponmudy and his son and DMK MP Gautham Sigamani.

The two were questioned by ED officers for the second day after Monday’s searches on premises linked to them. The questioning concluded by 10 p.m.

The case involves the alleged illegal issuance by Mr. Ponmudy of licences for red sand mining at five locations to his son, relatives, and benamis when he served as the Minister for Mines between 2007 and 2011. The ED alleged that the proceeds from illegal mining were deposited in benami accounts and layered through multiple transactions and accounts.

Eventually, two overseas entities — PT Excel Mengindo in Indonesia and Universal Business Ventures FZE in the UAE — were acquired. The Indonesian company was shown to have been bought for a nominal amount of ₹41.57 lakh. It was sold for over ₹100 crore in 2022.

The ED said in a statement that it was suspected that huge amounts of cash was transferred through hawala and used for the purchase of these overseas entities.

During the search operation, ₹81.7 lakh in unaccounted-for cash was seized, along with unexplained foreign currency, primarily in the British pound, roughly equivalent to ₹13 lakh, from the residence of Mr. Ponmudy, the ED said.