CHENNAI: A Chennai court on Saturday ordered the judicial custody of Tamil Nadu Minister V Senthil Balaji till August 25, 2023, after the custodial interrogation in connection with a money laundering case by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) ended.
Principal Sessions Court judge S Alli ordered the Minister to be remanded to judicial custody till Aug. 25 when he was produced before the court by the ED.
The court had granted five days of custodial interrogation of the Minister to ED on Aug. 7 following an order of the Supreme Court, which had also ruled in favour of the powers of the Central agency to take an accused for custodial interrogation while disapproving the contention of the arrested leader’s side that the agency is not vested with such power as per the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA).
He was arrested by ED on June 14 on the charges of receiving tainted money through the cash-for-job scam.
Complaining of chest pain on the day of arrest, he was admitted at the Govt Multi-Specialty Hospital at Omandurar Estate where he was diagnosed with heart blocks. He was then shifted to a private hospital for bypass surgery following an order from a division bench of the Madras High Court based on a habeas corpus petition.
Later, Senthil Balaji was locked up at the Puzhal Central Prison before being handed to ED for custodial interrogations.
The division bench delivered a split verdict on the legality of his arrest and the powers of the ED to take him into custody for interrogation. A third judge, for whom the matter was referred to, had also favoured the ED on the question of powers for taking an accused into custody.
The Supreme Court upheld this verdict and ordered granting five-day custody for ED for interrogations.