The unceremonious exits of V Senthil Balaji, Tamil Nadu’s minister for electricity, prohibition and excise, and K Ponmudy, minister for forests, have come at the behest of the higher judiciary. While hearing a petition to cancel Balaji’s bail in a money laundering case last week, the Supreme Court had given him a week to choose between resigning and returning to jail. On the other hand, Ponmudy drew the ire of the Madras High Court, which took suo motu cognisance of his unpalatable remarks on Hindu sects at a public event.
The DMK wants Balaji, who has the potential to deliver western Tamil Nadu for the party at the next assembly election, to be active on the field. The region is likely to see the toughest battle in 2026, with the AIADMK and the BJP, both with their strongest presence there, joining hands again. Having switched from the AIADMK to the DMK in 2018, Balaji is expected to work more vigorously to ensure the latter’s return.
The resignation of Ponmudy, 74, may signal the beginning of the veteran’s gradual retirement. The DMK, which has been put on the defensive many a time because of gaffes by some of its ministers, certainly did not want to provide more fodder to the BJP, which has never missed an opportunity to label the DMK “anti-Hindu”. So, as Ponmudy’s remarks went viral, the DMK swiftly stripped him of the party deputy general secretary’s post and made him apologise publicly.
However, the high court initiated suo motu action after the police failed to register a case. He had lost his ministership once in 2023 after conviction in a disproportionate assets case, only to return after the SC stayed the verdict.
The DMK, wary of another judicial direction forcing a minister’s removal, opted to pre-empt such a scenario. Meanwhile, the move to reinduct T Mano Thangaraj from Kanyakumari district into the cabinet appears driven by electoral factors as the BJP stronghold had no cabinet representation in recent months.
One cannot be sure whether this will be the DMK’s final cabinet reshuffle before the 2026 election. The high court recently revived disproportionate assets cases against two senior ministers, Duraimurugan and I Periyasamy, while the Enforcement Directorate searched properties linked to K N Nehru. These moves can set off another reshuffle. The ruling party may face a tough time trying to wriggle out of the opposition’s allegations of corruption.