Tamil Nadu Governor RN Ravi has agreed to reallocate Minister V Senthil Balaji’s portfolios to other ministers as per Chief Minister MK Stalin’s suggestion following his arrest by the Enforcement Directorate (ED). However, he rejected CM Stalin’s decision to let him continue as a member of the Council of Ministers. The Governor had rejected the reallocation of portfolios saying the reason provided — Senthil Balaji’s ill health — was “misleading” and “incorrect.”
In a press release dated June 16, Anandrao Vishnu Patil, Principal Secretary to the Tamil Nadu Governor, stated that RN Ravi has not agreed to Senthil Balaji continuing as a Minister as he was “facing criminal proceedings for moral turpitude and is currently in judicial custody.” Meanwhile, the Electricity and Non-Conventional Energy Development portfolios which Senthil Balaji had previously dealt with have been allocated to the Minister for Finance and Human Resource Management, Thangam Tennarasu. The Prohibition and Excise, Molasses portfolio has been allocated to the Minister for Housing and Urban Development S Muthusamy.
Previously on Thursday, June 15, the Governor, who has had a confrontational relationship with the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) government, had rejected the reallocation of portfolios saying the reasons provided were “misleading” and “incorrect.” According to reports, the state government’s proposal cited Senthil Balaji’s ill health as the reason behind the reallocation and not his arrest in connection with a cash-for-jobs scam. However, hours after the file was returned, CM Stalin said that the Governor had no power to ask for reasons behind changing portfolios.
Quoting the CM to the media, Higher Education Minister K Ponmudy alleged that the Governor returning the file amounted to “interference in government administration” and was also “against the Constitution.” Ponmudy also said that the Governor had sent a letter to CM Stalin on May 31 directing him to drop Senthil Balaji from the cabinet because of his alleged involvement in the scam.
According to the Higher Education Minister, CM Stalin through a letter said that there had been no precedent of a Minister being dropped from the state cabinet because of allegations against them that were still under investigation. It is to be noted that the letter from the Governor was sent days before the ED raided and arrested Senthil Balaji.
Senthil Balaji was arrested by the ED on Wednesday, June 14, in a case related to the cash-for-job scam which allegedly took place when he was the Transport Minister in the All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (AIADMK) government between 2011 to 2015. The ED had, in May, conducted an eight-day-long search at Senthil Balaji’s residence and at the homes and offices of his supporters and friends in Karur. On Tuesday, June 13, searches were conducted at the minister’s official chambers in the Secretariat and at his Chennai residence. Senthil Balaji was arrested hours after these searches, and was immediately admitted to a hospital following complaints of chest pain.