Chennai: A complaint by a private schools federation has triggered fresh controversy over the granting of recognition and no-objection certificates (NOCs) to private schools, putting former School Education Minister Mahesh under pressure.
The issue surfaced after the current School Education Minister Rajmohan recently issued recognition and NOC documents in Chennai. Federation representatives, speaking to the media, claimed that during the previous DMK government, private schools were allegedly forced to pay bribes—citing a figure of Rs 25 lakh—to secure approvals, while stating that under the present TVK government they obtained the documents without any payment.
School Education Department officials alleged that irregularities were widespread in the previous administration, including in teacher transfers, the “smart classroom” scheme and private school recognition. They further claimed that a three-member group close to Mahesh handled collections linked to recognition and transfer-related matters.
According to the officials, the group allegedly operated from an office in Teynampet, Chennai, and even after collecting money, delayed issuing approvals that should have been granted through due process. They said the federation’s public remarks followed frustration over such delays.
Officials said action has been ordered to register a case with the Vigilance and Anti-Corruption department based on the complaint submitted by private schools, intensifying the pressure on the former minister.
