Tamil Nadu Electricity Minister Breaks Down As ED Takes Him In Custody In Money Laundering Case

Tamil Nadu Electricity Minister V Senthil Balaji broke down as the Enforcement Directorate took him into custody in a money laundering case.

Tamil Nadu Electricity Minister V Senthil Balaji broke down as the Enforcement Directorate took him into custody in a money laundering case.

Tamil Nadu Electricity Minister V Senthil Balaji broke down as Enforcement Directorate (ED) officials took him into custody in connection with a money laundering case and brought him to Omandurar Government in Chennai for medical examination. Rapid Action Force has been deployed at Omandurar government hospital in Chennai, Balaji has been brought for medical examination. The DMK has called his arrested illegal and unconstitutional. DMK Rajya Sabha MP NR Elango said, "Tamil Nadu Electricity Minister V Senthil Balaji was picked up by ED & brought to Omandurar govt hospital."

"It seems he was not conscious when he was admitted to the hospital. It is totally illegal and unconstitutional arrest. We will fight it legally," he added.

#WATCH | Tamil Nadu Electricity Minister V Senthil Balaji breaks down as ED officials took him into custody in connection with a money laundering case and brought him to Omandurar Government in Chennai for medical examination pic.twitter.com/aATSM9DQpu

— ANI (@ANI) June 13, 2023

On Tuesday, Tamil Nadu CM MK Stalin condemned the ED raids at the residence and office of state Minister Senthil Balaji on Tuesday and said that the BJP was indulging in 'backdoor intimidation'. The CM also said that people are watching the 'intimidation politics'. ED raided the residence of Tamil Nadu Electricity Minister V Senthil Balaji as part of a money laundering investigation.

Stalin also released a press note condemning the raids. He said, "BJP is indulging in backdoor intimidation of those it is unable to face politically. People are watching BJP's intimidation politics." "The BJP using Central probe agencies will take revenge against those opposing them. This is the only way they know. There are several examples of this across the states," ABP Nadu quoted him as saying.

The CM also said that there was no clarity on why raids were conducted at the office of the Minister at the Secretariat.

He said: "In this scenario, the ED raided the office of the Minister at the Secretariat on Tuesday. However, it is still unclear on the necessity to conduct searches at the Secretariat. It appears like they want to show or threaten that raids can be conducted anywhere."

In May, the Income Tax department conducted marathon raids at the residences of Senthil Balaji's associates, including some contractors. Before the search, the I-T officials were manhandled and physically assaulted leading to the arrest of several people closely connected to his brother, Ashok.