Senthilbalaji, who has been arrested in Cash-for-jobs scam by ED, continuing as Minister without portfolio doesn’t augur well with Constitutional principles. But only Chief Minister can take a final call on this, observed Madras High Court.
Calling it a “constitutional travesty” the bench of Chief Justice SV Gangapurwala and Justice PD Audikesavalu observed that the founding fathers of the constitution may not have comprehended corrosion of governance to such an extent that a elected member in custody was rewarded with the status of Minister.
The court also highlighted that there could not be a moral or constitutional basis to retain an MLA as a Minister without portfolio and that it was opposed to ethos, good governance and constitutional morality and integrity.