Chennai, Jan 20 (IANS): AIADMK leaders and former Chief Ministers, O. Panneerselvam and K. Palaniswami have said that the raids conducted by the Tamil Nadu Directorate of Vigilance and Anti Corruption (DVAC) on the residence and premises of former higher education minister and AIADMK leader, K.P. Anbalagan is part of political vendetta by the DMK government.

In a joint statement on Thursday, the two senior leaders said that the raids in the name of unearthing unaccounted money and documents related to investments of the former minister were nothing but a farce. The leaders said that the DMK must understand that a political party like AIADMK cannot be cowed down by such frivolous acts using government agencies.

OPS and EPS said that the raids at Anbalagan's residential premises and the premises of his friends and relatives were only because the former minister had gone to the office of the Dharmapuri district collector expressing solidarity with a dharna staged by Pappierdipatti MLA, A. Govindasamy who the collector had refused to meet.

The senior AIADMK leaders said that the opposition party was like a big banyan tree and that cowing down such a political party by using government agencies would backfire on the government and the DMK as a political party.

The AIADMK also said that K.P. Anbalagan was the sixth minister of the previous government who was subjected to DVAC raids. The leaders said that M.R. Vijayabhaskar, C. Vijayabaskar, S.P. Velumani, K.C. Veeramani, P. Thangamani were the other leaders and former ministers whose residences and office premises were raided by the DVAC.