SC relief to TN minister as heart surgery performed at private hospital

Arrested Tamil Nadu minister V Senthil Balaji on Wednesday underwent a bypass surgery and was hemodynamically stable, the private hospital treating him in Chennai said. 

In some relief to the beleaguered Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam leader, the Supreme Court refused to stay a Madras high court order allowing him to be shifted to the private hospital.

The Enforcement Directorate, which arrested Balaji in connection with an alleged cash-for-jobs scam in the state transport department, had moved the apex court against the Madras HC order.

The HC had last week allowed the minister's plea to be shifted from a government super specialty hospital in Chennai to the private Kauvery Hospital, where he underwent the bypass surgery early on Wednesday.

The opposition All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam staged protests across Tamil Nadu seeking his dismissal from the state cabinet led by Chief Minister MK Stalin.

The minister underwent Beating Heart Coronary Artery Bypass surgery on Wednesday morning, a medical bulletin issued by Kauvery Hospital said.

"Four bypass grafts were placed and coronary revascularization was established," the bulletin from Dr Aravindan Selvaraj, co-founder and executive director, Kauvery Group of Hospitals, said.

"He is currently hemodynamically stable and being monitored in the postoperative intensive care unit by the multidisciplinary team of doctors and nurses," it said.

Balaji was initially admitted to the government hospital following his arrest, when he complained of chest pain and later shifted to the private facility following a court order.

Meanwhile, the apex court refused to stay the lower court order.

A Supreme Court vacation bench of Justice Surya Kant and Justice MM Sundresh noted that the petition was still pending in the high court and asked the ED to approach that court.

"The observations made by the high court was in an interim order and any oral observation made by this court shall have no bearing on the case," the bench said while posting the matter for hearing on July 4.

Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, appearing for ED, said the high court order sets a wrong precedent.

Balaji, then electricity and prohibition and excise minister of Tamil Nadu, was arrested on June 14 under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act in an alleged cash-for-jobs scam that took place when he handled the transport portfolio in an AIADMK government led by the late J Jayalalithaa.

He is now Minister without Portfolio, after those handled by him were re-allocated to his cabinet colleagues Thangam Thennarasu and S Muthusamy.

The high court passed an interim order after Balaji's wife filed a habeas corpus petition alleging illegal arrest.

Meanwhile, main opposition AIADMK held state-wide protest seeking Balaji's expulsion from the cabinet.

Senior leaders and former minsters including D Jayakumar, SP Velumani, Sellur Raju, C Ve Shanmugam and P Thangamani among others led the agitations held in cities including Chennai, Coimbatore, Madurai, Villupuram, Namakkal, Salem and Ramanathapuram.

State BJP president K Annamalai termed as "stonewalling measure," Balaji undergoing the surgery a week after complaining of chest pain.

Responding to a reporter's query in neighbouring Mahabalipuram in this regard, the Bharatiya Janata Party leader said generally one doesn't criticise someone when the person is under medical treatment.

"So, I am not going to talk about that. Let the doctors do whatever surgery after taking decisions. Beyond that, this is more or less a stonewalling measure . The ED has also argued (about this) in the Supreme Court," he said.