Awar of words broke out between DMK MLA E.V. Velu and Public Works Minister Aadhav Arjuna in the Tamil Nadu Assembly on Tuesday over alleged irregularities in a ₹5.54-crore tender floated for relocating the Chief Minister’s Office.
The dispute centred on claims that the tender notification appeared in newspapers on August 13 but was uploaded on the official website only four days later, on August 17. Adding to the suspicion, while the newspaper advertisement mentioned the tender value as ₹5.54 crore, the online version reportedly left the field blank, showing ‘NA’, according to a report by ANI.”
Raising the matter on the floor of the House, Velu traced the legacy of the Chief Minister’s Office as he recalled that some of the state’s most iconic leaders – from Anna and Kalaignar to MGR, Jayalalithaa, and MK Stalin – had all functioned from the same room. “Very simple people have served as Chief Ministers of this state,” he said. “If Tamil Nadu is today seen as number one in the country, it is because all of them worked from that very room.”
Velu stated that Stalin was moving to a new office on the tenth floor of the Namakkal Kavignar Maaligai, a building originally constructed by Kalaignar. “When there is a room from which so many schemes were implemented, I am personally happy that our brother, the Chief Minister, is moving to a room built by Kalaignar. The present room was built by the British, while the room to which the Chief Minister is moving was built by a Tamil,” Velu said.
He also questioned the transparency of the tender process itself, pointing to the delay in uploading the notification and the missing cost details.
Responding sharply, Minister Arjuna brushed aside the allegations, calling them a calculated attempt to cast doubt while pretending to care. He pointed out that Velu was relying on a report from a private newspaper.
“The reports published in the newspapers are incorrect. I will provide an explanation for them today itself. The tender process has not yet been completed,” he stated.
“There is a reason why it has not yet been officially announced. There is also a reason why the Schedule of Rates has not yet been announced in connection with the Chief Minister’s project. If we announce the Schedule of Rates today, we know that contractors generally increase their prices in accordance with the prevailing cost of civil works. Usually, they increase their bids by 3 per cent, 5 per cent or 7 per cent. However, we have given all departments the same Schedule of Rates that was in effect last year,” he added.
The TVK minister said that the government will present a White Paper in the assembly on tenders issued during the previous DMK government’s tenure.
“Why have we done this? Because today we are going to present a White Paper in the Legislative Assembly. We know what happened with all the tenders issued in the Highways Department and the Public Works Department over the past five years. In the last 60 days alone, 20 projects have been re-tendered. The benefit of this is that we are now receiving tenders at values approximately 20 per cent to 36 per cent lower.
The issue of shifting the Chief Minister’s Office was discussed further. Kalaignar had wanted a new Secretariat to be constructed. Is there any disagreement about that? Amma (Jayalalithaa) also wanted a Secretariat to be constructed. There is agreement on that as well, but considering the circumstances and why they wanted a new Secretariat to be constructed, the Chief Minister meets people from various sections from 9:30 in the morning until 5 in the evening,”
“Many foreign delegations also come to meet the Chief Minister, but there are no proper facilities for them. That is why both Kalaignar and Amma wanted a new Secretariat to be constructed. The Chief Minister is shifting his office so that everyone can sit and work comfortably. The Chief Minister is doing this with the intention that all the officials should have a good and comfortable working environment. This is only a temporary arrangement to facilitate this. It is not being done for his personal comfort or for his own requirements,” he added.
However, Velu countered by pointing out that estimates for such projects are prepared collectively by IAS officers under the Finance Department Secretary, and that the minister’s argument about price inflation didn’t hold water.
“This is carried out collectively by various departments, involving IAS officers and under the leadership of the Finance Department Secretary. It is on this basis that the estimate is prepared. Now the Public Works Minister is once again saying that prices are being increased. That is incorrect. When tenders are invited, contractors want to secure the work. They want to get the work somehow…Some may even think, ‘We do not need to make a profit; it is enough if we can pay the salaries of the people working for us. That has nothing to do with the government or the minister. Once the Schedule of Rates is fixed, that is the end of the matter,” he said.
Arjuna then responded that no tender can be released without the minister’s knowledge, regardless of how many officials are involved.
“Whatever plan the officials prepare, it cannot be released without coming to the attention of the ministers. Even if officials from all the departments are involved, it can be released only after it comes to the attention of the Public Works Minister. We are currently issuing the tender based on the same Schedule of Rates that was used the previous time. If we increase it by 7 per cent or 10 per cent now, when tenders subsequently come in at 36 per cent lower than the estimate, people will start comparing them with this Schedule of Rates. A detailed White Paper on this matter will be released,” he said.