Former DMK minister Anbil Mahesh Poyyamozhi has moved the Madras High Court to quash an alleged bribery FIR. Conflicting accounts of his arrest have sharpened concerns over police conduct at advocates' offices.Stock photo used for illustrationChennai,Oct 29, 2026 15:42 ISTFormer DMK minister Anbil Mahesh Poyyamozhi has approached the Madras High Court seeking to quash an FIR against him in an alleged scam involving bribes worth crores of rupees for granting recognition and approvals to private schools, the Press Trust of India reported.The petition came up for hearing before Justice V Lakshminarayanan on Thursday.
The court posted the matter for further hearing on November 10.Senior counsel P Wilson, appearing for Poyyamozhi, told the court that on October 26, 2026, he was awaiting a copy of the High Court order dismissing the DMK leader's anticipatory bail petition. Poyyamozhi had visited his office that day to discuss the next course of action.Wilson alleged that the police suddenly entered his office and arrested Poyyamozhi during the discussion.
Another counsel for Poyyamozhi, Richardson Wilson, said 40 police personnel were positioned on the staircase from the ground floor to the third floor of his office. He alleged that the investigating officer entered the office and arrested the former minister while the discussion was under way."How can the police come to an advocate's office and arrest a person who has come to discuss his case?
There was no protection for advocates," he told the court, according to PTI. Condemning the police action, Wilson argued that entering an advocate's office and arresting a client violated Article 21 of the Constitution.
He said there was no urgency to enter the office and make the arrest. He added that decorum should be maintained and urged the court to frame a standard operating procedure for the police before making arrests.Public Prosecutor R John Sathyan and Additional Public Prosecutor Arun Anbumani disputed the lawyers' account.
They said the police went to the advocate's office after receiving information that Poyyamozhi was there and waited outside for more than one-and-a-half hours.They said Poyyamozhi was asked to come outside and that the police did not enter the office. He was arrested after he came out, they added.Justice Lakshminarayanan referred to an order of the Special Court recording that Poyyamozhi had been arrested outside the advocate's office.
The judge asked senior counsel Wilson to challenge that order if he wished to do so.The High Court will hear Poyyamozhi's plea to quash the FIR again on November 10, amid conflicting claims from his lawyers and the prosecution over where and how he was arrested.- Ends