TN dental council president used private trust to siphon off bribe amount

Chennai:

Central Bureau of Investigation has arrested Tamil Nadu Dental Council  president Dr Gunaseelan Rajan for taking a bribe of Rs 75 lakh to grant approval to a private dental college to start post-graduate course.

Sources told Express that Gunaseelan was arrested after he was summoned by CBI for an enquiry into the graft case in which Dr Murugesan, a Dental Council of India (DCI) member, and three others were arrested on January eight for demanding a bribe from a private college to start Post Graduate Dental courses at suburban Melmaruvathur.

CBI sources said that Gunaseelan has been remanded to judicial custody till February 1. Others who were arrested earlier include former AIADMK legislator T Palani, who had acted as a middleman, college administrative officer K Ramabadran and Adiparasakthi Trust member R Karunanidhi.

Sources said that it was Dr Gunaseelan who instructed Dr Murugesan, who was a member of the state dental council of India, to collect the bribe amount from Adi Parasakthi Medical College.

Sources said during the investigation it was revealed that the bribe amount is siphoned off to a private trust run by Dr Gunaseelan and Dr Murukesan. The money worth Rs 75 lakh was recovered after Dr Gunaseelan confessed to have received the amount for granting permission to a dental college.

Sources also said the duo would also use the private financiers deposits to route the bribe amount. Further investigations into the case are on as CBI is going through documents seized from Gunaseelan’s house and office.