A fresh storm has hit Tamil Nadu’s political and administrative circles after the Enforcement Directorate (ED) alleged a massive “cash-for-jobs” racket in the state’s Municipal Administration and Water Supply Department (MAWS). The revelation has raised serious questions about fairness in public recruitment which is a process that millions of young Indians trust as their pathway to secure government employment.
According to the ED’s letter to the Tamil Nadu Director General of Police, bribes ranging from ₹25 lakh to ₹35 lakh per post were allegedly paid to secure over 2,500 civic jobs. The agency has sought a detailed police probe, claiming large-scale manipulation during the 2024–25 and 2025–26 recruitment drives that filled 2,538 posts, including assistant engineers, town-planning officers, junior engineers, and sanitary inspectors. Over 1.12 lakh candidates had applied.
The ED says it found digital evidence by way of WhatsApp chats, cash and hawala trails, and internal documents during searches conducted in April 2025 as part of a separate bank-fraud investigation. The trail, officials say, led to individuals allegedly linked to the MAWS recruitment process.
Because the agency cannot register a case directly under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) without a predicate offence, it has asked the state police to file an FIR, paving the way for a money-laundering probe.
The Tamil Nadu government has strongly denied the allegations. Municipal Administration Minister K.N. Nehru maintained that the recruitment was conducted transparently through Anna University and termed the ED’s claims as politically motivated
For thousands of job-seekers, the allegations cut deep. If true, they suggest that money, not merit, decided who made it into government service. The ED’s preliminary findings indicate that at least 150 candidates may have benefited from manipulated results.
The matter now rests with the Tamil Nadu Police. The ED has submitted a 230-page dossier containing names, money trails, and alleged middlemen. The controversy has already triggered a political storm, with questions over integrity and transparency in Tamil Nadu’s public recruitment system.
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