Former School Education Minister Anbil Mahesh Poyyamozhi has approached the Madras High Court seeking bail in the over ₹400-crore private schools fraud case by stating that he is suffering from acute-on-chronic pancreatitis necessitating continuous medical care.
In the bail plea listed for hearing before Justice V. Lakshminarayanan on Thursday (November 12, 2026), the former Minister said, he suffers from constant upper abdominal pain which necessitates a specialized dietary regimen and appropriate medical treatment.
Further, claiming to have lost approximately three to four kg of body weight and that his platelet count had also witnessed a significant decline ever since his arrest on October 26, 2026; the petitioner said, he may not get adequate medical care and continous monitoring in judicial custody.
Undertaking to abide by any condition imposed by the court for grant of bail, the former Minister said, there had been a substantial change in circumstances ever since the High Court refused to grant him anticipatory bail in the case on October 26, 2026 leading to his arrest by the Chennai Central Crime Branch police.
The petitioner said, the abscondence of co-accused Muthukumar was one of the reasons for the High Court having denied the relief of advance bail. However, the plea for bail could be considered now since the co-accused had surrrendered before a special court concerned on October 29, 2026, he added.
Further, highlighting that the investigating agency had already subjected him to interrogation after taking him into their custody for about two days, the petitioner said, despite granting such police custody, the special court had on November 10, 2026 refused to order his release on bail.
He said, the police had objected to grant of bail before the special court on the ground that Muthukumar’s car driver Saravanan was still absconding. The police had relied upon a video clip of the driver keeping a bagful of currency notes in a car reportedly belonging to the former Minister.
Without admitting the genuineness of the video clip, the petitioner said that even that video does not contain his visuals or that of any person associated with him. He stoutly denied having received any cash at his former official residence from the car driver Saravanan.
“The said person has been set up by certain vested interest to manufacture evidence against the petitioner. A random video shot by the alleged driver of A-2 cannot be used as clinching material against this petitioner. In any case, the video does not justify continued incarceration of the petitioner,” his bail petition read.
Published – November 12, 2026 05:30 am IST
