No tampering of digital evidence in Senthil case: ED to Madras high court
The ED also argued that Balaji had intentionally stalled the commencement of trial and urged the court to order speedy trial instead of accepting his bail plea
The Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Thursday told the Madras high court that there was no tampering with the digital evidence to frame the former Tamil Nadu minister Senthil Balaji in the money laundering case and his allegations against the federal agency were false.
Justice Anand Venkatesh had taken up Balaji’s bail plea on February 14 when the former minister submitted that the brand of a pen drive and hard disk seized and the ones produced in court are different and that the pen drive was initially reported to have contained 284 files but later it was modified to 472 files.
“It is palpably a false argument,” a senior counsel representing ED told HT on condition of anonymity. The federal agency further said that it was the crime branch of the Tamil Nadu police who had collected the documents and digital evidence in the predicate offence and submitted the same to forensic analysis and to the court. “We have culled out from what was submitted and investigated,” the senior counsel said. “So we explained to the court that there has neither been tampering and nor can that allegation be made against the ED. Even the state police have not tampered with the evidence. Our case is also that it is not ₹1.3 crore but ₹66 crore proceeds that has been concealed in various places.”
The ED also argued that Balaji had intentionally stalled the commencement of trial and urged the court to order speedy trial instead of accepting his bail plea. The court has adjourned the hearing to Monday.
Balaji handed in his resignation on February 12, eight months after the ED had arrested him in a money laundering case. Previously, his bail was rejected by a trial court in the city. It is currently being heard by Justice Anand Venkatesh of the high court. On January 20, the justice observed that it does not augur well that he continues to be a minister despite being incarcerated for 240 days.
An ED team arrested Balaji on June 14 last year under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), 2002, in a 2014 case when he was the transport minister under the All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (AIADMK) government.
Following his arrest, he was hospitalised for chest pains and subsequently underwent heart surgery at a private hospital. He was discharged on July 17 and has since been jailed at Puzhal Central Prison. Later, Stalin reallocated his portfolios — electricity, excise and prohibition — citing his ill health and not his arrest.
