Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) supporters put up wall posters in Chennai on friday, questioning Governor RN Ravi and stating that there are Union Ministers who are still in the cabinet despite having multiple cases filed against them.
The posters were placed near the DMK headquarters in Teynampet, Chennai, at Anna Arivalayam.
The posters list the cases against BJP-led union government ministers and state that Ravi will write to Delhi to remove them from the union cabinet. This comes after Governor Ravi on Thursday decided to keep the dismissal order of the jailed DMK leader and state minister V Senthil Balaji in abeyance for the time being, sources said.
“Tamil Nadu Governor R N Ravi keeps the dismissal order of Minister V Senthil Balaji in abeyance. He will take the advice of the Attorney General on this matter,” they said.
Previously, the Governor dismissed Balaji from the Council of Ministers, days after his arrest by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) in an alleged cash-for-jobs scam.
Tamil Nadu Chief Minister MK Stalin had said the state government would challenge the governor’s decision legally. Speaking to reporters, Stalin said, “Governor doesn’t have the right (to dismiss a sitting minister) and we will face this legally.
“In an official release, Raj Bhavan said, “Minister V Senthil Balaji is facing serious criminal proceedings in a number of corruption cases including taking cash for jobs and money laundering…Under these circumstances, Governor has dismissed him from the Council of Ministers with immediate effect.”
Balaji was arrested by the Enforcement Directorate on June 14 in a cash-for-jobs scam. He was later admitted to a government hospital in Chennai after he complained of chest pains. He was allowed by the Madras High Court on June 15 to be shifted to a private hospital of his choice. Tamil Nadu Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) Vice President Narayanan Thirupathy stated on thursday that Governor RN Ravi made the ethically correct move by expelling DMK leader Senthil Balaji from the State Council of Ministers.