‘They tried to break his spirit’: After SC bail to Senthil Balaji, MK Stalin hails his ‘sacrifice’

“Dear brother Senthil Balaji has been granted bail by the Supreme Court after 471 days,” Stalin said in a statement. “In the current scenario, where the Enforcement Directorate has been turned into a tool to suppress political opponents, the Supreme Court alone stands as a beacon of hope,” he wrote.

Stalin compared Balaji’s long imprisonment to the abuses of power seen during India’s Emergency period in the 1970s. “Even during the Emergency, such long imprisonment was not seen. Political conspiracies continued for 15 months,” Stalin said, reiterating his view that Balaji’s arrest was politically motivated.

Despite his arrest last June, Stalin had retained Balaji as a minister without portfolio until February 2024, when Balaji resigned after nearly nine months in detention.

Balaji’s plea for bail was rejected multiple times by both the district sessions court and the Madras High Court before the Supreme Court intervened. The Bench of Justices Abhay S Oka and Augustine George Masih granted Balaji’s release, but with what they termed “onerous conditions”.

Though Balaji’s health deteriorated during his arrest — necessitating bypass surgery and multiple hospitalisations — his legal team’s attempts to secure bail on medical grounds were also denied by both the Madras HC and the SC earlier in the case.

Stalin’s statement ended with a message of solidarity for Balaji, welcoming him back from prison. “Your sacrifice is great, but your resolve is even greater,” Stalin said. “They tried to break his spirit, but he will come out stronger.”