C. Vijayabaskar

C. Vijayabaskar (or Vijayabasker; born 8 April 1974) is an Indian politician from the All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam Party (AIADMK),^[1] and the Health minister of Tamil Nadu from 2013 to 2021.^[2][3][4] He is a member of the Tamil Nadu Legislative Assembly for the Viralimalai constituency, from where he won elections in 2011, 2016 and 2021. He was previously elected from Pudukkottai constituency in 2001.

C. Vijayabaskar
Minister for Health and Family Welfare, Government of Tamil Nadu
In office 1 November 2013 – 7 May 2021
Governor	Konijeti Rosaiah C. Vidyasagar Rao (Additional charge) Banwarilal Purohit
Chief Minister	J. Jayalalithaa O. Panneerselvam Edappadi K. Palaniswami
Preceded by	K. C. Veeramani
Succeeded by	M. Subramaniam
Member of Tamil Nadu Legislative Assembly
Incumbent
Assumed office 16 May 2011
Preceded by	constituency created
Constituency	Viralimalai
In office 14 May 2001 – 12 May 2006
Preceded by	P. Mari Ayya
Succeeded by	R. Nedunchezhian
Constituency	Pudukottai
Personal details
Born	(1974-04-08) 8 April 1974 (age 50) Iluppur, Pudukkottai, Tamil Nadu
Political party	All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam
Spouse	Ramya
Children	2 Daughters
Education	MBBS
Profession	Doctor Politician
Website	drcvijayabaskar.com

Personal life

C. Vijayabaskar was born on 8 April 1974 at Iluppur, Pudukkottai, Tamil Nadu to R. Chinnathambi Mazhavarayar. He completed his formal education from Rajah Muthiah Medical College and Hospital (RMMCH), Chidambaram.^[5] He is married to Ramya and the couple have two children.^[6]

Controversies

Alleged obstruction of officials conducting an income tax raid at Vijayabhaskar's house in April 2017 led to First Information Reports being filed against his fellow ministers, R. Kamaraj and Udumalai K. Radhakrishnan, but were cancelled due to lack of evidence.^[7] He faced further investigation by the Central Bureau of Investigation in 2018, which again was pending for a very long time due to lack of solid prima facie evidence and is rumored to be false information.^[8]

C. Vijayabaskar was the health minister of state in April 2017 when income tax raid discovered evident documents revealing the AIADMK party's intention to offer a sum of Rs 89 crore to "bribe" voters during the byelection for Chennai's RK Nagar assembly constituency, with an individual rate of Rs 4,000 per voter.^[9]

The Directorate of Vigilance and Anti-Corruption (DVAC) has filed a case against Vijayabhaskar, accusing him of illegally acquiring disproportionate assets worth Rs 27 crore during his five-year tenure in the 2016–2021 Tamil Nadu government led by the AIADMK. The DVAC registered a case against him and has also named his wife, and further searches were carried out at multiple properties allegedly owned by he and his family on 18 October 2021.^[10]

References

1. "List of MLAs from Tamil Nadu 2011" (PDF). Govt. of Tamil Nadu. Archived from the original (PDF) on 20 March 2012.
2. "Vijayabaskar is new Health Minister". newindianexpress.com. Archived from the original on 23 April 2016. Retrieved 12 April 2016.
3. "Health minister of Tamil Nadu". assembly.tn.gov.in. Retrieved 12 April 2016.
4. Ramakrishnan, Deepa H. (3 March 2016). "Chief Minister Jayalalithaa on Wednesday dropped Animal Husbandry Minister T.K.M. Chinnayya from the Cabinet. She also relieved him and Health Minister C. Vijaya Baskar". thehindu.com. Retrieved 12 April 2016.
5. "Dr C Vijayabaskar Official (Visiting his alma mater during COVID crisis)". 5 September 2020.
6. "CVB Personal - Dr.C.Vijayabaskar Biography Native". Dr.C.Vijayabaskar. Retrieved 11 February 2021.
7. Madhav, Pramod (14 April 2017). "FIRs against 3 AIADMK ministers for obstructing I-T raids". Retrieved 4 May 2017.
8. Sundar Singh, C (6 September 2018). "Vijayabaskar First Tamil Nadu Minister to Come Under CBI and IT Scanner, Stalin Demands Resignation". News18. Retrieved 6 September 2018.
9. "I-T raids on DK Shivakumar: BJP wins perception battle; hits 2 election-bound states with one stroke". Firstpost. 3 August 2017. Retrieved 6 November 2023.
10. "'Amassed Rs 27 crore as Health Min': DVAC books AIADMK's C Vijayabhaskar". The News Minute. 18 October 2021. Retrieved 18 October 2021.