The Supreme Court granted bail to former Tamil Nadu minister V Senthil Balaji in a money-laundering case on Thursday, Live Law reported.
The bail was granted by a bench of Justices Abhay Oka and Augustine George Masih. Oka said that stringent bail provisions and delay in trial cannot go together.
Balaji was arrested by the Enforcement Directorate in June 2023 for allegedly conspiring with transport corporation officials to appoint candidates recommended by his aides in exchange for money. He allegedly laundered the proceeds of the crime in violation of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act.
The central law enforcement agency has alleged that bribes worth crores of rupees were taken from candidates in exchange for jobs when Balaji was the transport minister in Tamil Nadu’s previous All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam government from 2011 to 2016.
After the party split in 2017, Balaji joined the rival Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam, which is currently in power in Tamil Nadu.
In the Supreme Court, Balaji argued that the search and seizure operations by the investigating agency were flawed, Live Law reported.
Lawyers Mukul Rohatgi and Sidharth Luthra, representing Balaji, had said that the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam leader had been in jail for more than a year and had undergone coronary bypass surgery while in custody.
They contended that combined with the delay in the commencement of the trial, Balaji qualified for bail under Section 45 of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act.
According to Section 45 of the Act, bail can be granted to an accused in a money laundering case only if there is prima facie satisfaction that the person has not committed the offence and is unlikely to commit any offence while on bail.
The Enforcement Directorate had said that it has evidence such as documents and emails that allegedly implicate Balaji in the case.
The central agency said that the former minister was influential and alleged that Balaji was compromising witnesses in the predicate offence, Live Law reported. The state of Tamil Nadu was helping the accused and ensuring that the trial in the predicate offence did not conclude, the Enforcement Directorate claimed.
In February, Balaji resigned as the state Cabinet minister. He had been a minister without a portfolio since his arrest. Before his arrest, he was the minister for electricity, prohibition and excise.
Balaji’s bail applications were rejected several times. In October, the Madras High Court rejected his bail plea that he had moved on medical grounds.
He unsuccessfully challenged the High Court’s decision in the Supreme Court in November. The top court had told Balaji at the time that it was not satisfied with his arguments seeking bail on medical grounds and asked him to apply for regular bail.
On January 12, a court in Chennai rejected Balaji's bail plea. The Enforcement Directorate told the court that Balaji, if released from custody, could derail its investigation and threaten witnesses.
A month later, the High Court also rejected his regular bail plea.
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