Senthil Balaji moved a sessions court for bail; a high court judge recused himself from hearing a habeas corpus petition filed by his wife.
Published Jun 14, 2023 | 7:36 PM ⚊ Updated Jun 14, 2023 | 7:37 PM
Chief Minister MK Stalin visits Senthil Balaji at the hospital. (Screengrab)
A Chennai court on Wednesday, 14 June, remanded Tamil Nadu’s Minister for Electricity, Prohibition and Excise V Senthil Balaji in judicial custody for 14 days, even as doctors attending to him recommended that he undergo bypass surgery for triple vessel disease.
The Enforcement Directorate (ED) arrested Balaji in the small hours of Wednesday after a 17-hour-long search conducted at places connected to him, including his office in the Secretariat, purportedly in connection with the cash-for-jobs case registered in 2015.
Soon after his arrest around 2 am, Balaji complained of severe chest pain and was admitted to the Government Multi Super Specialty Hospital (GMSSH) at Omandurar Estate in Chennai.
Around 10.40 am, a coronary angiogram was performed on the minister, according to a medical bulletin.
The doctors advised Senthil Balaji to undergo bypass surgery after the angiogram revealed three blocks in his blood vessels, the bulletin added.
In a related development, a high court judge recused himself from hearing a habeas corpus petition the minister’s wife had filed.
Senior ED officials collected Balaji’s medical records and forwarded them to Central government officials. They even sought the advice of doctors at AIIMS.
A team of doctors from the Central government-run ESI Hospital visited GMSSH and reviewed Balaji’s health and the treatment being provided to him.
The ESI doctors would give ED a report based on their assessment. The ED’s next step would be based on the report.
Doctors attending Balaji also recommended treatment for the next three days after finding variations in his heartbeat.
In a clear show of solidarity with Senthil Balaji, a host of senior leaders of DMK visited him in the hospital where he is admitted.
Health Minister Ma Subramaniam has been camping in the hospital and monitoring the treatment provided to Balaji.
Chief Minister MK Stalin called on Balaji at the hospital and enquired about his health condition with doctors. Ministers Duraimurugan and K Ponmudi accompanied the chief minister.
Sharing his photograph with Balaji, Stalin questioned the arrest of his Cabinet colleague and the “inhuman” treatment meted out to him.
“What was the purpose of the ED raids torturing Senthil Balaji to the point that he experienced chest pain, even after he offered to cooperate fully with the investigation? Was it necessary for the ED officers to act inhumanely, in violation of the legal procedures?” he asked in a tweet.
விசாரணைக்கு முழு ஒத்துழைப்பு தருகிறேன் என்று சொன்ன பிறகும் அமைச்சர் செந்தில் பாலாஜிக்கு நெஞ்சு வலி ஏற்படும் வகையில் சித்ரவதை கொடுத்த அமலாக்கத்துறையின் நோக்கம் என்ன?
வழக்கிற்குத் தேவையான சட்ட நடைமுறைகளை மீறி மனிதநேயமற்ற முறையில் அமலாக்கத்துறை அதிகாரிகள் நடந்து கொண்டிருப்பது… pic.twitter.com/D2EIs5vvWN
— M.K.Stalin (@mkstalin) June 14, 2023
The chief minister stated that the DMK would not be cowed by such threats by the BJP, and added that the people would teach the BJP a lesson in the 2024 elections.
He called for a protest against Balaji’s arrest. The DMK’s allies would join the protest slated for Friday, 16 June, in Coimbatore.
“To oppose the BJP’s anti-democratic and vengeful dictatorial acts, a public protest meeting will be conducted on June 16, 2023 (Friday) at 5.00 pm at Sivananda Colony in Coimbatore, on behalf of the Secular Progressive Alliance Parties,” the DMK announced.
Despite the Supreme Court's admonition, the BJP's Enforcement Directorate does not appear to be changing its ways.
To oppose the BJP's anti-democratic and vengeful dictatorial acts, a "Public protest meeting" will be conducted on June 16, 2023 (Friday) at 5.00 pm at Sivananda… pic.twitter.com/T1ujPtMVHr
— DMK (@arivalayam) June 14, 2023
“Our people’s campaign will continue until we deliver the final blow to the BJP,” Stalin added while stating that despite the Supreme Court’s admonition, the ED was not changing its ways.
As per the arrest manual, the accused should be produced before the magistrate/judge concerned within 24 hours.
Accordingly, Principal Sessions Judge S Alli visited GMSSH and initiated the remand procedures on Wednesday evening.
She enquired about the health condition of Balaji. The judge later remanded Balaji in judicial custody till 28 June.
Balaji’s advocates requested the judge to allow the continuation of the treatment at GMSSH as his health condition did not allow him to travel or be lodged in prison.
After being remanded, Balalji approached the sessions court seeking interim bail.
On Wednesday afternoon, a Madras High Court judge recused himself from hearing a habeas corpus petition that Balaji’s wife S Megala filed in the morning.
Earlier, senior advocate and DMK MP NR Elango, who appeared for Megala, requested a division bench of Justices M Sundar and R Sakthivel for an urgent hearing of the petition.
Elango mentioned that the minister was arrested in violation of due procedures laid down by the law and rulings of the Supreme Court.
He also submitted that the minister’s wife was not informed of the arrest. The ED officials kept the minister in illegal detention, the court heard.
The judges directed the senior advocate to number the petition with the registry for a post-lunch hearing at 2.15 pm.
However, when the court resumed after the lunch break, Justice Sakthivel rescued himself from hearing the case.
Justice Sundar told the petitioner to approach another bench after getting the Chief Justice’s approval.
Elango approached the registry to list the case before a bench comprising Justices J Nisha Banu and D Bharatha Chakravarthy.
But, since the cause list had already been issued, the advocate requested that the case be listed in the evening.
The case against Balaji dates back to November 2014, when the Metropolitan Transport Corporation advertised a recruitment drive to fill up various vacancies. Soon, allegations of corruption surfaced.
Balaji was then the transport minister in the AIADMK government. He would join the DMK only in 2018.
The first complainant was one Devasagayam, who claimed in October 2015 that he gave ₹2.6 lakh to Palani, a bus conductor, who promised his son a job in the transport corporation.
Devasagayam claimed the conductor did not fulfil the promise nor returned his money. However, Balaji’s name did not figure in the complaint.
Balaji came into the picture when another man, Gopi, filed a similar complaint in March 2016.
The complainant said he had paid ₹2.40 lakh to two individuals, reportedly related to Balaji, for a conductor job. Gopi later approached the high court, accusing the police of inaction.
The court ordered the Crime Branch Assistant Commissioner to probe the case. The probe report, however, implicated only the 12 individuals mentioned in Devasagayam’s complaint. The report, submitted in 2017, excluded the minister and his relatives.
Meanwhile, more people came up with complaints. Transport Department employee V Ganesh Kumar alleged that the transport minister and three others had directed him to collect ₹95 lakh from job aspirants.
A similar complaint was lodged by another man, K Arulmani. He alleged that ₹40 lakh collected from his friends was paid to Balaji’s personal assistant.
Two years after AIADMK supremo J Jayalalithaa died in 2016, Balaji joined the DMK. He won the assembly election from Karur and was inducted into the Stalin cabinet.
After he became a minister in the DMK-led government, his personal assistant Shanmugam and another man, R Sahayarajan, approached the victims with a compromise formula. However, the compromise move was seen as an admission of bribery, which garnered the ED’s attention.
