Jailed Tamil Nadu minister Senthil Balaji resigns after repeated bail rejections

Tamil Nadu minister V Senthil Balaji has resigned from the state cabinet, seven months after he was arrested and imprisoned by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) in a money laundering and job scam case. The move comes as his stay in the MK Stalin-led Cabinet without any portfolio has become highly untenable after repeated rejections of his bail plea by different courts.

 

The office of Chief Minister Stalin confirmed the submission of Balaji’s resignation and said it has been sent to the Governor for approval. His resignation has come just days



before the Madras High Court is slated to review his bail plea. Balaji’s arrest was linked to a purported cash-for-jobs scam that occurred during his tenure as the transport minister, from 2011 to 2015.

Before his arrest, the DMK leader held significant positions, managing electricity, excise, and prohibition portfolios. Despite Balaji’s legal troubles, Chief Minister Stalin chose to keep him in his cabinet without any portfolio and allocated his duties to other senior ministers.