Supreme Court Grants Enforcement Directorate Custody Of Tamil Nadu Minister Senthil Balaji, Upholds Arrest Legality

The Supreme Court has granted the Directorate of Enforcement (ED) the authority to take custody of Tamil Nadu minister Senthil Balaji, who was arrested. The legality of the arrest of the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) party leader has been upheld.

Dismissing the appeals from Minister Balaji and his wife, Megala, who challenged the Madras High Court's decision affirming his arrest in a money laundering case, the Supreme Court bench, consisting of Justices A S Bopanna and M M Sundresh, has referred the matter of extending police custody beyond the initial 15-day remand period to a larger bench.

Despite being arrested on June 14, Balaji, who holds a ministerial position without portfolio in the Tamil Nadu government, along with his wife, opposed the Madras High Court's ruling that upheld his arrest by the investigative agency. The arrest is linked to a money laundering case connected to the alleged cash-for-jobs scandal within the state's transport department.

Balaji and his wife argued in the highest court that the investigating agency cannot seek custodial interrogation once the 15-day period from the arrest date has passed, as this is not permitted by law.

The couple had earlier challenged the authority of the ED in the Supreme Court, asserting that officials from the anti-money laundering probe agency are not classified as police officers.

The ED took Balaji into custody based on an Enforcement Case Information Register (ECIR) filed under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act in 2021.

This ECIR was initiated following three First Information Reports (FIRs) lodged against him by local police in 2018, accusing him of being involved in a cash-for-job scheme during his tenure as the Transport Minister in Jayalalithaa’s Cabinet in 2015.

Recently, as part of the ongoing money laundering investigation, the Enforcement Directorate conducted searches at the residence of Senthil Balaji's personal assistant, Shankar, in Karur district. During these searches, officials seized two bags of documents from his house.