The Chennai Zonal Office of the Directorate of Enforcement (ED) has taken significant action, provisionally attaching immovable properties, fixed deposits (FDs), and various bank accounts. These assets, valued at approximately ₹2.56 crore, belonged to the late Indian Administrative Service (IAS) officer A.N. Dyaneshwaran and his family. The attachment was carried out under the stringent provisions of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), 2002.
The ED’s probe began in 2017, following a First Information Report (FIR) and subsequent charge sheet filed by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), Chennai. These documents, initiated under the Prevention of Corruption Act, 1988, accused Dyaneshwaran of exploiting his public office within the Tamil Nadu government. He allegedly used corrupt and illicit methods to accumulate assets far exceeding his legitimate income sources.
The CBI’s charge sheet, submitted on March 14, 2001, meticulously detailed that Dyaneshwaran and his family had acquired disproportionate assets worth an estimated ₹7.34 crore between July 11, 1991, and January 31, 1996. The legal proceedings for this case are currently in an advanced stage.
Further investigations by the ED unveiled that the erstwhile IAS officer had channeled funds to procure numerous immovable and movable assets. These assets were registered under the names of his family members, as well as entities like M/s Shilpi Grih Constructions and Dr. Dharmambal Namasivayam Trust.
Consequently, the ED has officially attached 16 immovable properties. A significant portion, 12 of these properties, have been identified as direct ‘Proceeds of Crime’ (POC), having been acquired by Dyaneshwaran and his family during the period of 1991 to 1996. The total acquisition value of these 16 properties at the time of purchase was approximately ₹1.7 crore.
Additionally, the ED has frozen fixed deposits and bank accounts belonging to Dyaneshwaran’s family members, collectively holding ₹86.24 lakh. This recent action follows a search operation conducted on February 28, 2025. Furthermore, a Provisional Attachment Order issued on March 27 of this year had already resulted in the attachment of assets worth ₹1.19 crore. According to an official statement from the ED, the cumulative acquisition value of all assets attached in this ongoing case now stands at ₹3.75 crore.
The investigation into this matter remains active and is currently ongoing.