The Supreme Court granted bail to former Tamil Nadu minister V Senthil Balaji in the money laundering case related to a 2014 cash-for-jobs scam.
A bench of Justices Abhay S Oka and Augustine George Masih put onerous conditions while granting relief. The Supreme Court had reserved its verdict on August 12 after hearing submissions of solicitor general Tushar Mehta, representing the Enforcement Directorate (ED), and senior advocates Mukul Rohatagi and Sidharth Luthra, appearing for Senthil Balaji.
Senthil Balaji was arrested by the ED in June last year and has remained in judicial custody since then. In November last year, the Supreme Court had declined to entertain Balaji’s plea seeking bail on medical condition remarking that it was not satisfied with his plea and that his medical condition could be cured with medicines.
V Senthil Balaji Likely To Be Reinstated To The State Cabinet
It is highly anticipated that Balaji will be reinstated to the state cabinet led by Chief Minister M.K. Stalin in the soon happening shuffle. It may be recalled that the top court had earlier declined to pass any interim order staying the February 28 order of the Madras High Court, which had dismissed Balaji’s bail petition. However, it issued a notice to the ED and sought the response of the Central agency within four weeks.
In its order, a bench of Justice N. Anand Venkatesh of the Madras High Court observed that even if Balaji had resigned from his position as a Minister, he continues as an MLA belonging to the ruling party in Tamil Nadu and continues to wield a lot of influence on the state government. The high court had asked the trial court to complete the trial within three months by conducting the proceedings on a day-to-day basis.
MK Stalin Welcomes Verdict
Tamil Nadu Chief Minister MK Stalin welcomed the Supreme Court’s judgment and accused the ED of being a “department of suppression of political opponents”.
“Even during the Emergency, no one was put in jail for so many days. Political conspiracies continued for 15 months. By arresting him and keeping him in jail, they wanted to break the resolve of my brother Senthil Balaji. I welcome Senthil Balaji, who is coming out of prison. Your sacrifice is great! Assurance is greater than that!” he tweeted.