MADURAI – The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), Anti-Corruption Branch (ACB) Madurai, has registered a First Information Report (FIR) against a Senior Intelligence Officer and four others in a major corruption and tax evasion scandal involving medical student placements in the Philippines.
The case, registered on January 19, 2026, centers on allegations that a high-ranking official accepted a bribe in the form of land property to “hush up” a massive Goods and Services Tax (GST) evasion case.
The Accused
The CBI has named the following individuals and entities in the FIR:
- Mr. S.K.S. Nagarajan: Senior Intelligence Officer, Directorate General of GST Intelligence (DGGI), Madurai Regional Unit.
- Mr. Ariyamuthu Gunasekar: Managing Director, M/s Fence Education Academy Private Limited.
- Mr. Maran Rabindra Sailapathy & Mr. Ariyamuthu Veeramani: Directors of Fence Education Academy.
- M/s Fence Education Academy Private Limited: A Tirunelveli-based company.
The Philippines Medical Placement Scheme
According to source information, Fence Education Academy was engaged in recruiting medical aspirants from Tamil Nadu for colleges in the Philippines. Between 2017 and 2021, the company allegedly:
- Sent approximately 1,000 students abroad.
- Collected ₹8.40 lakh per student as annual tuition fees and agent commissions.
- Used various benami accounts to collect funds and allegedly siphoned off student fees, leading to complaints of non-payment to universities.
Despite the high volume of revenue, the company allegedly evaded the mandatory 18% GST, paying only a nominal amount to the government.
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Allegations of “Quid Pro Quo”
On March 22, 2021, S.K.S. Nagarajan conducted raids on the company’s premises across Tamil Nadu, uncovering irregularities and unpaid GST totaling ₹7.5 crore.
The CBI alleges that Nagarajan entered into a criminal conspiracy with the company directors. Instead of pursuing the full recovery, he reportedly:
- Demanded a bribe in the form of immovable property.
- Offered to reduce the company’s GST liability from ₹7.5 crore to just ₹1.5 crore.
As a “quid pro quo,” Director Maran Rabindra Sailapathy allegedly registered a sale deed on November 7, 2022, for a 5.59-cent plot of land in VOC Nagar, Tirunelveli, in favour of Nagarajan. While the property was registered at a guideline value of ₹12 lakh, its actual market value at the time was approximately ₹35 lakh.
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Legal Proceedings and Approvals
The FIR was filed after a lengthy procedural process to obtain necessary sanctions:
- September 20, 2024: Approval under Section 17A of the PC Act was granted by the Additional Commissioner (Vigilance), CGST Delhi West.
- October 31, 2025: The Government of Tamil Nadu issued a notification under Section 6 of the DSPE Act, granting the CBI jurisdiction to investigate within the state.
- December 26, 2025: The Department of Personnel and Training (DoPT), Government of India, extended the CBI’s powers to the whole of Tamil Nadu for this specific case.
The accused have been booked under Section 61(2) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), 2023 (Criminal Conspiracy), and Sections 7 and 11 of the Prevention of Corruption Act, 1988. The CBI has officially taken up the investigation.