Film producer Akash Baskaran and his friend Vikram Ravindran, serving as a director at Akash Baskaran Creative Studios Private Limited, have approached the Madras High Court complaining about the action initiated against them by the Directorate of Enforcement (ED) reportedly in connection with the TASMAC money laundering investigation.
A Division Bench of Justices M.S. Ramesh and V. Lakshminarayanan on Friday granted time till June 17 for ED Special Public Prosecutor N. Ramesh to explain the link between the petitioners and the TASMAC case and whether the agency had the authority to seal a premises if it was found to be locked when the sleuths go for a search operation.
According to a Panchanama (seizure memo) prepared by the ED, it had conducted a search and seizure operation at the Alwarpet residence of Mr. Baskaran on May 16, 2025. It was on the same day when the TASMAC headquarters in Chennai was also subjected to a search and seizure operation. The officers found that only his driver Durairaj Selvaraj was at home.
“Thus, Shri Durairaj Selvaraj was requested to contact Shri Akash Baskaran to arrive at the premises. Shri Durairaj Selvaraj called Shri Baskaran at 6:15 a.m. on his phone number and requested him to arrive at the premises. However, Shri Baskaran did not arrive and instead he switches his phone off,” the memo read and stated the search was carried out in the presence of the driver.
During the search, the ED officials found a Registration Certificate (RC) of a Toyota Hycross Hybrid car registered in the name of Mr. Vikram’s father B. Ravindran. The RC identified the vehicle owner to be residing at an apartment in Semmenchery and hence a team of ED officials rushed to the spot immediately but could not search that premises since it was locked.
Thereafter, the ED seized three iPhones, one more mobile phone, a laptop, two external hard disks, one hard drive, the lease agreements for the Alwarpet flat as well as another flat in Poes Garden, Chennai. Claiming he had absolutely nothing to do with the TASMAC money laundering case, Mr. Baskaran urged the court to declare the search operation at his premises as illegal and order return of seized properties.
On his part, Mr. Ravindran filed two writ petitions complaining that his office at Semmenchery and residence at Poes Garden were sealed by the ED since the premises were locked when the officials went there for the search operation. Claiming that the ED officials have no authority to seal a premises at will, he sought an order declaring the sealing of the premises as illegal and a consequent direction to de-seal the premises.
Published – June 14, 2025 12:20 am IST
