New Delhi: The Supreme Court has rejected the pleas filed seeking the release of V Senthil Balaji, leader of the DMK party and a minister in Tamil Nadu, who was arrested in June in connection with a money laundering investigation led by the Enforcement Directorate. The court has also ordered that he be held in custody for an additional five days for further investigation.
A bench consisting of Justices AS Bopanna and MM Sundresh stated that a writ of habeas corpus would not be applicable in this case. They pointed out that any non-compliance with the provisions of Section 19 could result in action under Section 62, and any challenge to the order of remand should be made before a higher court. The court clarified that the custody under Section 167(2) of the CrPC (Criminal Procedure Code) encompasses not just police custody but also other forms of custody. The bench upheld the views expressed in the judgement, and the appeal was deemed liable to be dismissed.
Furthermore, the bench excluded the period during which Senthil Balaji underwent hospitalization from his custody under the Enforcement Directorate and stated that the habeas corpus petition filed by his wife, Meghala, was not maintainable in this context.
Referring to the judgement of Anupam Kulkarni, which stipulated that police custody cannot extend beyond the initial 15 days of remand, the bench decided to refer the matter to a larger bench for reconsideration.
The court was hearing an appeal lodged by Minister Senthil Balaji and his wife challenging the majority opinion of the Madras High Court bench, which had suggested that his custody could be handed over to the Enforcement Directorate for their investigation into the cash-for-jobs scam.
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