Published Sep 09, 2026 | 4:47 PM ⚊ Updated Sep 09, 2026 | 4:51 PM
Ratheesh Raj Shanmugavel in happier times. (Special Arrangement)
Synopsis: Who is Ratheesh Raj Shanmugavel, the private individual the DVAC has described as an alleged “power broker” in Tamil Nadu’s liquor administration, and why did Chief Minister Vijay raise his name in the Tamil Nadu Assembly?
Who is Ratheesh?
Chief Minister C Joseph Vijay’s question in the Tamil Nadu Assembly on September 7, while referring to an alleged TASMAC corruption network, threw the spotlight on a man whom senior journalist RK Radhakrishnan recently described as a ‘fugitive’.
Vijay highlighted Ratheesh’s alleged proximity to those in power in the previous DMK dispensation and questioned his whereabouts. The Chief Minister’s mention brought renewed attention to a name that had already surfaced in investigations into alleged irregularities in the state-run liquor retail corporation, TASMAC.
Ratheesh Raj Shanmugavel is among the private individuals named in the Directorate of Vigilance and Anti-Corruption’s (DVAC) FIR in the TASMAC case.
The FIR identifies him as A6 and describes him as a “Private Individual – Close Associate of Tr.V.Senthil Balaji”, the former Minister for Electricity, Prohibition and Excise. Unlike the other prominent accused in the case, Ratheesh has no known formal government or political position.
Yet the DVAC FIR gives him a significant role. It describes Ratheesh as a “central figure operating as an unauthorised power broker in Tamil Nadu’s liquor administration ecosystem” and alleges that he exercised direct and undue influence over S Visakan, the then Managing Director of TASMAC.
According to the FIR, Visakan allegedly followed Ratheesh’s directions based on instructions from Senthil Balaji.
The agency alleges that Ratheesh issued informal but authoritative directions on matters including approval of major liquor brands, manipulation of bar licence tenders and administrative transfers, including those involving District Revenue Officer-level officers.
The allegation, therefore, is not that Ratheesh occupied a formal position within TASMAC, but that he allegedly wielded influence despite being an outsider to the official administrative structure.
The DVAC registered Crime No. 05/2026 on July 28, 2026, following government approval under Section 17A of the Prevention of Corruption Act. The case concerns alleged manipulation of procurement and tender processes, bar licences, transport tenders and allegedly bogus or inflated transactions involving distilleries, breweries, transport firms and bottling companies.
The investigation covers the government-run liquor network across the State. Tamil Nadu has around 5,380 TASMAC retail shops and 3,240 bars, according to the FIR. In six districts, the DVAC examined the tendering of 857 bars in 2021 and alleged violations of tender rules and cartelisation among bidders.
The agency further alleged that 284 bars shown as closed were continuing to operate without renewed licences, resulting in an estimated government revenue loss of more than Rs 32 crore in Coimbatore North, Coimbatore South and Nilgiris during 2022-23.
The FIR also records alleged manipulation of transport tenders covering 45 TASMAC depots, including an allegation that nine unused demand drafts belonging to one transporter were subsequently used to facilitate tenders for other transporters.
The DVAC alleges that Ratheesh and former Senthil Balaji aide Bhaskar influenced transfers and postings of TASMAC officials for “undue advantage”. It also alleges that private individuals and companies operated in collusion with senior TASMAC officials and political executives.
The agency further alleges that selected distilleries were favoured in the supply of liquor and that TASMAC customers were charged amounts above the actual MRP, allegedly by as much as Rs 500 for certain foreign liquor brands and Rs 10 to Rs 100 for other brands between 2021 and 2025.
The FIR ultimately alleges that Ratheesh and another private individual, S Karthik alias Mulanoor Karthik, abetted offences allegedly committed by public servants as part of a wider nexus involving private individuals, companies, political executives and senior TASMAC officials.
Despite the scale of the allegations, Ratheesh has remained a relatively obscure figure in public life. He is not a known elected politician or government official.
That makes the DVAC’s description of him particularly significant: the agency is alleging that his importance came not from an official designation, but from access and influence within the system.
Independent journalist Siddharth Prabhakar on X described Ratheesh as someone who, despite not formally being a member of the DMK, had close links to the Stalin family.
A Deutsche Welle Tamil report said Udhayanidhi and Ratheesh knew each other from childhood and their friendship blossomed on the cricketing grounds. The report drew attention to Ratheesh being called Udhayanidhi’s shadow. It said that he reportedly had a say in major postings made during the DMK rule.
A dossier sent by the Enforcement Directorate to the Tamil Nadu Police in October 2025 is also reported to have named Ratheesh as a middleman who allegedly facilitated jobs and collected bribes.
A May 2025 report in The Week said the AIADMK and BJP had alleged that Ratheesh Raj Shanmugavel, known as Ratheesh Velu too, along with film producer Akash Bhaskaran, was linked to then Deputy Chief Minister Udhayanidhi Stalin. The report, however, noted that the Enforcement Directorate had not officially established such a connection at the time.
Senior journalist Radhakrishnan was another person who recently mentioned how Ratheesh was often seen around Udhayanidhi.
When Udhayanidhi was asked about Ratheesh after Vijay’s speech, he responded with a counter question: “Then I can also ask who Vishnu Reddy and Sujay Reddy are and why they are controlling the mining contracts in this government. What position do they hold in the party?”
Also Read:
When Tamil Nadu CM Vijay’s charged rhetoric left questions unanswered
(Edited by R Rajesh Kumar.)
