The Directorate of Anti-Corruption and Vigilance (DVAC) staff were accused of illegal trespassing into the ED zonal office in Madurai, according to a complaint the Enforcement Directorate filed with top Tamil Nadu police officer Shankar Jiwal.
According to the ED assistant director’s complaint, DVAC officials ‘permitted unauthorized unknown persons to enter the office of the ED’ and ‘conducted an illegal search,’ enabling them to view, copy, and remove private and sensitive ED records related to ongoing investigations into multiple high-profile cases.
The ED alleges that all DVAC officers—aside from one—failed to produce their ID cards when questioned and that there was no search warrant presented. According to ED, the DVAC officers were not donning their badges and clothing.
The ED further claimed that DVAC agents broke into Ankit Tiwari’s (the arrested officer) room; they opened case files unrelated to the purported case for which a search warrant was issued; and they obtained private information and ED internal documents pertaining to unrelated cases.
‘The room of Ankit Tiwari was locked intermittently during this search; therefore, the search team consisting of unauthorised people had access to records of ED in private,’ the complaint read.
‘They were continuously speaking with various people, giving information about various records and taking instructions…They constantly said that they had pressure from seniors to do these acts,’ the agency added.
According to the ED complaint, they are also investigating the number of ‘stolen’ records, the number of duplicated papers, and any potential misuse of the copies.
The agency emphasized, ‘The ED is investigating many powerful persons in the state. There are many cases which require protection of witnesses.’
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