Arappor Iyakkam urges systemic reforms to sustain Vijay govt's anti-corruption drive

Anti-corruption activist Jayaram Venkatesan has welcomed what he calls a notable shift within the Tamil Nadu government under Chief Minister C Joseph Vijay. According to Venkatesan, officials across several departments have halted the collection of "party funds"—a practice he describes as bribery disguised as political activity—within the administration's first two months.

“Party fund is nothing but a bribe collected by politicians in the name of saying that they wanted it for the party. So it’s basically our tax money being looted in the name of party fund,” Venkatesan, convenor of anti-corruption movement Arappor Iyakkam, told The Federal.

Scrapping bloated tenders

In addition to stopping party funds, he said, the Tamil Nadu government has cancelled several inflated tenders. He cited the Chennai Corporation’s Rs 274-crore pathway tender as an example, noting that while the actual cost was estimated at Rs 1.5-2 crore per unit, the tender was finalised at Rs 8-9 crore per unit before being scrapped.

Also read: Poll promise or vendetta? TVK's crackdown on DMK under the spotlight

The state government also revoked 22 tenders in the Water Resources Department in Pollachi and scrapped tenders worth nearly Rs 2,000 crore in the Electricity Board.

Welcoming these measures, Venkatesan stated, “I think all these are a welcome move. So all these point out to a situation where they are ready to take feedback from the people and implement (projects); wherever complaints come, they have been responsive.”

Systemic changes required

While citizens have reported receiving services without paying bribes at some public offices, Arappor Iyakkam has stressed that these initial steps are insufficient without systemic reforms.

Currently, limited tenders below Rs 50 lakh are permitted, a provision that officials allegedly exploit to favour selected contractors. To address this, Arappor has called for amendments to the Tender Transparency Act to mandate open bidding for all tenders above Rs 1 lakh.

Also read: TN minister’s sting operation exposes Tiruchendur temple malpractices

The group also flagged the lack of competition, stating that nearly 70 per cent of tenders in Tamil Nadu attract only one or two bidders due to alleged bid-fixing. It has recommended automatically cancelling any tender in which only one bidder reaches the financial bid stage.

Accountability and governance

Gaps in full e-governance also persist, as services like birth certificate corrections still require offline visits to government offices.

On legal accountability, Venkatesan noted that out of nearly 40 complaints filed by the organisation, only 10 FIRs have been registered so far. The movement calls for proper investigations and additional FIRs, including cases involving older allegations.

Emphasising the need for institutional fixes, Jayaram Venkatesan remarked, “If you have to run a corruption-free governance, the elimination of corruption needs to happen in a systematic way. People need to see that on one side, bribes are not being collected in these offices, and the last two months have been very good... But to sustain this, they have to make it systematic and that is what we expect from this government.” Ultimately, whether this drive results in lasting institutional change or remains an early slogan will depend on systematic legal reforms, full e-governance, competitive bidding, and strict legal action, he noted.