SC to hear plea against High Court order allowing shifting V Senthil Balaji to private hospital

The High Court had said Balaji would continue to remain in judicial custody.

The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has approached the Supreme Court challenging the Madras High Court's order directing the shifting of Tamil Nadu Minister V Senthil Balaji to a hospital after his arrest in a money laundering case.

Solicitor General Tushar Mehta mentioned the matter before a vacation bench of Justices Surya Kant and M M Sundresh, which put the plea for urgent hearing on Wednesday, June 21.

The court initially said the High Court should be allowed to deal with the matter.

Mehta, for his part, contended that the High Court should not have entertained the habeas corpus petition filed by the minister's wife when his arrest had taken place as per due process.

Mehta submitted that conducting the interrogation in a hospital would affect the investigation, as the 15-day remand period would expire under such circumstances.

"This will hamper our investigation. We won't be able to interrogate him like this," he said.

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The High Court on June 15 allowed shifting of Balaji to Kauvery Hospital, a private hospital in Chennai for an emergency bypass surgery.

Balaji, a minister in the cabinet of the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK)-led government in Tamil Nadu, was arrested by the ED on June 13 in connection with a money laundering case after the Supreme Court in May allowed the CBI and the ED to quiz him in the cash-for-job case during his tenure as Transport Minister between 2011 and 2016.

Immediately after the arrest, Balaji complained of chest pain and was admitted to a government hospital.

The City Civil and Sessions Court, Chennai remanded Balaji to judicial custody till June 28 after visiting him at the hospital and ascertaining his health condition.

The Sessions judge, however, permitted Balaji to continue his medical treatment at the government hospital.

Acting upon a plea by his wife, S Megala, the HC also allowed his treatment at the hospital.

On June 16, the Principal Judge at City Civil and Sessions Court, Chennai allowed the plea by ED for custodial interrogation of the minister. But it directed that the interrogation should be at the hospital only.