Senthil Balaji seems to have undergone mental and physical torture: Stalin
CHENNAI: DMK president and Chief Minister MK Stalin condemned the arrest of Minister V Senthil Balaji by the Enforcement Directorate and said that the DMK will face the cases against Balaji legally and the party cannot be cowed down by such intimidating tactics.
"It seems Senthil Balaji has been subjected to mental and physical torture and he was pressured to the extent that he suffered chest pain. Now he is in the Intensive Care Unit," he alleged in a statement.
Meanwhile, along with Udhayanidhi Stalin and senior cabinet colleagues, the chief minister called on Senthil Balaji at the Omandurar multi-super speciality hospital and enquired about his health.
In his statement, the chief minister asked: “Even after Balaji said he would cooperate with the ED inquiries, why should the ED torture him? Why did the ED officials treat Senthil Balaji in an inhuman manner violating the legal process needed for such inquiries? "The cruel way of thinking of those who unleashed officials has come out. Senthil Balaji will face the case legally. People are watching these repressive tactics and they will teach a befitting lesson in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections.”
The chief minister also said the ED officials entered the state secretariat without any permission, where the government's secret files are maintained and enacted a drama in the chamber of Senthil Balaji in the disguise of inquiry. "They tried to show that ED searches could be carried out in the state secretariat itself," he added.
Earlier, Chief Minister MK Stalin went into a huddle with senior colleagues and legal experts at his residence about the next course of action. Since Senthil Balaji is holding key portfolios that need constant monitoring, the portfolios are likely to be given to one or two senior ministers in the cabinet until Balaji is out of the legal hurdles he is facing. There are chances that Senthil Balaji may continue as a minister without a portfolio for some time and depending on what the legal turns the case against him takes in the coming days.