Vasan Eye Care founder AM Arun has reportedly died under mysterious circumstances early on Monday morning after he allegedly suffered chest pain. The 51-year-old was brought to Kauvery Hospital where he was declared dead on arrival. Some of his relatives raised suspicion over his death. Following which, the police have registered a case of suspicious death.
As per police, the relatives have raised suspicion that AM Arun could have killed himself and created a ruckus at the hospital. Based on their statements, a cause under section 174 of CrPC was registered by Teynampet police. As per police, preliminary verbal postmortem report by doctor suggests it is a natural death with no traces of either suicide or murder. However, more details will be available once viscera reports is ready.
AM Arun’s closeness to P Chidambaram
As per reports, AM Arun was a close aide of Congress leader and former union finance minister P Chidambaram and his son Congress MP Karti Chidambaram. There were allegations that the Chidambarams used loss-making Vasan Eye Care to launder black money. In 2015, the Income Tax officials had searched his residence in Chennai and Vasan Eye Care hospitals in Mylapore. The Enforcement Directorate (ED) had also investigated the financial dealings of the group.
A 2015 article on The New Indian Express alleges that P Chidambaram and his Karti, through front companies, specifically Advantage Strategic Consulting Pvt. Ltd, received black money through Vasan. In the New Indian Express article, Chartered Accountant and columnist S Gurumurthy alleges that P Chidambaram owned Vasan Eye Care through companies in Mauritius and Singapore. Chidambaram, however, had denied the allegations.