Tamil Nadu BJP state president K. Annamalai has denied any political motivation behind the detention of DMK leader and Tamil Nadu minister for electricity and prohibition, Senthil Balaji. Annamalai clarified that Balaji was detained for a legal case related to the cash for jobs scam. He stated that the Enforcement Directorate (ED) had raided Balaji’s residence on the directives of the Supreme Court.
Annamalai also stated that the BJP did not believe in political vendettas and added that the opposition’s allegations were being politicized. The DMK and its allies have accused the BJP of using central agencies like the ED and income tax department to arm-twist opposition leaders.
Further, Annamalai called for cooperation from Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M.K. Stalin in the ED investigation and urged him not to make contradictory statements. He reminded reporters that in 2016, when Stalin was the leader of the opposition, he had called for a fair probe into the allegations against Balaji, who was then in the AIADMK.
Balaji was arrested on Wednesday after a marathon questioning of 18 hours at his official residence. The DMK is currently on the backfoot in light of Balaji’s arrest.
The BJP state president assured reporters that the entire investigation was carried out under the supervision of the Supreme Court and emphasized that the BJP did not engage in such style of functioning.
In conclusion, Annamalai’s message was clear – there was no political vendetta behind Balaji’s detention. Instead, it was simply a legal case related to the cash for jobs scam. Nonetheless, the situation has further fueled the allegations of political motivations behind the ED’s raids and arrests of opposition leaders in Tamil Nadu.
