The arrest of Senthil Balaji, the first minister in Stalin's Cabinet to be arrested by the ED, came at the end of a day of dramatic events.
Minister Senthil Balaji after being arrested and taken by ED Officials and later admitted to hospital after he complained of chest pain. (Supplied)
At the end of a dramatic, 17-hour-long raid conducted under the protection of Central forces, the Enforcement Directorate (ED) took Tamil Nadu Electricity Minister V Senthil Balaji into custody in Chennai in the wee hours of Wednesday, 14 June.
The minister, who complained of chest pain soon after, was taken to the Government Multi Super Speciality Hospital at Omandurar Estate in the state capital.
Senthil Balaji is the first minister of Chief Minister MK Stalin’s Cabinet to be arrested in what is also being seen as a political message to the ruling DMK in Tamil Nadu, which has been at the forefront of rallying the Opposition against the ruling BJP at the Centre.
Earlier, the raid at the Secretariat office of Balaji was condemned by Chief Minister Stalin as a “a direct assault on the federal principle” and a part of the “cheap acts of vindictive politics” of the BJP.
According sources, after concluding its searches around 2 am on Wednesday, ED officials served a summons to the minister for further interrogation and informed him that he was being taken to the ED Joint Director’s Office at Shastri Bhawan on Haddows Road.
According to an ED Official, the raids were conducted in a case filed in connection with the “jobs for cash” scam while Balaji was transport minister in the AIADMK regime during 2011-2016.
“The searches were conducted in connection with a money laundering investigation under the PML Act of 2002 and the arrest order copy and supporting materials in the ‘job for cash’ case has been forwarded to the Adjudicating Authority as per the PML Rules,” the officer said.
Sources in the ED said that Balaji was mostly uncooperative during the raids. “When the summon was served on him stating that he was being taken into custody for further interrogation, he said that he was unwell and need to be attended by his personal doctor and also wanted to meet his advocate,” an officer said.
When officials said he would be provided with all the opportunities in due course of time, Balaji was adamant about wanting to meet them immediately. But the officials refused.
While being taken in a car by ED officials, Balaji reportedly said that he was experiencing unbearable chest pain and fainted in the car, after which he was taken to hospital.
In TV visuals, Balaji was seen holding his chest and writhing in pain while lying on the back seat of a car. A stretcher was brought down and two policemen lifted Balaji out of the car and took him inside the hospital.
He was admitted in the Intensive Care Unit (ICU), with Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) personnel — deployed during the raid for the protection of ED officials — allowing only doctors inside.
ED officials have reportedly conveyed the high drama at the hospital to their higher officials. Sources stated that once Balaji’s health condition is certified by the doctors, the next course of action will be decided.
“As Balaji has been arrested, he will have to be produced before a magistrate for remand within 24 hours,” an officer said.
Meanwhile, Sports Minister Udhayanidhi Stalin, Health Minister Ma. Subramaniam, Minister for Public Works EV Velu, Law Minister Ragupathy and HR&CE Minister Sekar Babu reached the hospital at Omandurar Estate and met the doctors treating Senthil Balaji.
Scores of DMK functionaries and officer bearers also gathered at the hospital.
Speaking to reporters, Udhayanidhi said that the DMK would not be cowed down by such threats by the BJP. He said that the party would take up the case legally.
When South First contacted the duty doctors of the government hospital, they refused to comment on the health of the minister, stating that he was brought in unconscious and was under treatment.
After the DMK cadres gathered in the hospital, additional forces of the CRPF and a platoon of paramilitary forces was deployed in and around the hospital.
Control of the entry and exits of the hospital was was taken over by the CRPF.
Chennai City Police also increased its strength in and around the hospital campus, with the Deputy Commissioner of Triplicane overseeing the deployment of the state forces.
DMK Law Minister Raghupathy condemned the action against Senthil Balaji, while several Opposition leaders condemned the raids.
அமலாக்கத்துறையின் நடவடிக்கை மனித உரிமையை மீறிய செயல்; அமைச்சர் செந்தில் பாலாஜியை மன உளைச்சலுக்கு ஆளாக்கவே அமலாக்கத்துறை நடவடிக்கை;
அமலாக்கத்துறையின் நடவடிக்கை ஜனநாயக நாட்டில்தான் இருக்கிறோமா என்ற கேள்வியை எழுப்புகிறது
ஓமந்தூரார் மருத்துவமனை வளாகத்தில் மாண்புமிகு சட்டத்துறை… pic.twitter.com/Y6PIMF4QMX
— DMK IT WING (@DMKITwing) June 14, 2023
I thank Thiru @Kharge, Thiru @PawarSpeaks, Hon’ble @MamataOfficial, Hon’ble @ArvindKejriwal, Thiru @SitaramYechury and all the opposition leaders for strongly condemning the undemocratic ED raid unleashed by Union BJP Government at Tamil Nadu Secretariat and offending the…
— M.K.Stalin (@mkstalin) June 13, 2023
The raids that started at multiple places associated with Balaji, including in Chennai, Karur and Erode, on Tuesday morning, had concluded a little after midnight.
Around 12 am on Wednesday, an additional team of ED sleuths reached Balaji’s government bungalow, in addition to the two teams that were already conducting the raids.
In Karur, the raids at Balaji’s residence went on for nearly for 10 hours and ended around 10 pm on Tuesday.
The raids at the state Secretariat in Senthil Balaji’s office also ended around 1 am on Wednesday.
Earlier on Tuesday, a team of five officials conducted the search operation at the minister’s office at the Secretariat and confiscated the computer hard drive and files.
Later in the evening, an additional team of five more officers joined the search operation. Further, three more computers in Balaji’s office were scrutinised.
The ED Officials also concluded the search operations at the residence of Ashok, the younger brother of Senthil Balaji.
Earlier on Tuesday morning, a team of seven ED officials had raided his properties at Bishop Garden on Greenways Road.
Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge has condemned the late-night arrest of Senthil Balaji by the ED.
“This is nothing but political harassment and vendetta by the Modi government against those opposed to it. None of us in the Opposition will be intimidated by such brazen moves,” he said.
Congress President Shri @kharge condemns the late-night arrest of Tamil Nadu Electricity Minister Shri V. Senthil Balaji by the ED.
This is nothing but political harassment and vendetta by the Modi govt. against those opposed to it. None of us in the Opposition will be… pic.twitter.com/RLzKDae5cA
— Congress (@INCIndia) June 14, 2023
I thank Thiru @Kharge, Thiru @PawarSpeaks, Hon’ble @MamataOfficial, Hon’ble @ArvindKejriwal, Thiru @SitaramYechury and all the opposition leaders for strongly condemning the undemocratic ED raid unleashed by Union BJP Government at Tamil Nadu Secretariat and offending the…
— M.K.Stalin (@mkstalin) June 13, 2023
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![[Left] File photo of BJP MLA Harish Poonja, who has been booked, and [right] Poonja sitting for a protest in front of Belthangady Police Station in the early hours of Sunday, 19 May, 2024.](https://s3.ap-south-1.amazonaws.com/media.thesouthfirst.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/05/Harish-Poonja-and-Belthangady.jpg "Harish Poonja and Belthangady")
