Notice to ED: Annamalai dubs state human rights panel as “extension” of ruling DMK

PTI, Jun 21, 2023, 4:32 PM IST

The BJP on Wednesday questioned the Tamil Nadu State Human Rights Commission seeking a report from the Enforcement Directorate (ED) on alleged violation of human rights during the arrest of Minister V Senthil Balaji, charging the panel with not functioning in neutral and transparent manner.

BJP state president K Annamalai accused the commission of acting like an ”extended branch of the ruling DMK,” and said central agency personnel are protected under the Constitution while discharging their duty.

”As far as the SHRC in Tamil Nadu is concerned, it, more or less, is working like an extended branch of the DMK and is not functioning neutrally and independently..the SHRC in Tamil Nadu has not been professional and neutral in this matter,” he alleged while talking to reporters.

If summons are issued to ED officials ”for doing their duty, there will be no end to it,” the former IPS officer added.

He said central agency personnel while discharging their duty are protected under the constitution.”Everything (regarding Balaji’s arrest) has been videographed. This (SHRC notice) shows how much the DMK government has stooped,” he lashed out. On Balaji’s plea for shifting from a government hospital to a private one, Annamalai said this showed the ”Dravidian model” where ”the DMK is admitting our government hospitals are not safe enough for our own ministers,” and sought to know how people would visit them.