Supreme Court adjourns bail plea of former minister Senthil Balaji in money laundering case till July 10

The Supreme Court on Thursday has adjourned to July 10 the bail plea of former Minister Senthil Balaji. The adjournment was sought on behalf of the Solicitor General (SG) Tushar Mehta as he was engaged in the matter of CM Arvind Kejriwal before the bench led by Justice Sanjiv Khanna.

Senthil Balaji has moved the Supreme Court against a Madras High Court order denying him bail in a money laundering case over the cash-for-jobs allegations. The bench comprising Justice AS Oka and Justice Ujjal Bhuyan noted that it would be imperative to have the presence of the Solicitor General in the present matter for the court to proceed with the hearing.

Dismissing the suggestion of Senior Advocate Aryama Sundaram to hear the petitioner on smaller issues in the absence of Solicitor General, the Court said that time is sought on behalf of Solicitor General as he is busy in Court Room no.2, and listed the matter for July 10.

During the hearing on Wednesday, Justice Oka verbally observed that a priority hearing cannot be given to the former Minister merely on the ground that he has been in jail for over 300 days as there have been instances where the accused persons have been incarcerated for years under the PMLA provision and yet are not able to seek immediate relief.

Senthil Balaji was a Minister in Tamil Nadu government’s transport department between 2011-2016. The Minister was accused of having orchestrated, along with his personal assistants and brother, the collection of money by promising job opportunities in various positions of the Department. Notably, multiple complaints were filed against the accused by candidates who paid money but could not secure employment.

After the allegations, the Enforcement Directorate (ED) registered an ECIR and arrested Balaji in June, 2023. When the former Minister moved the Madras High Court for bail, relief was denied for lack of merits. Nonetheless, considering that Balaji had been incarcerated for more than 8 months, the High Court directed the Special Court to complete the trial within 3 months.

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