TN Governor dismisses Minister Senthil Balaji from Cabinet
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Chennai: Tamil Nadu Governor R N Ravi on Thursday dismissed Minister V Senthil Balaji from the Council of Ministers, Raj Bhavan said.
In an official release, Raj Bhavan said Senthil Balaji "is facing serious criminal proceedings in a number of cases of corruption, including taking cash for jobs and money laundering. Abusing his position as a minister, he has been influencing the investigation and obstructing the due process of law and justice." Currently, he is in judicial custody in a criminal case being investigated by the Enforcement Directorate.
A few other criminal cases against him under the Prevention of Corruption Act and IPC are being investigated by the state police.
"There are reasonable apprehensions that continuation of V Senthil Balaji in the Council of Ministers will adversely impact the due process of law, including fair investigation that may eventually lead to breakdown of Constitutional machinery in the State," the release said.
"Under these circumstances, the Governor has dismissed Senthil Balaji from the Council of Ministers with immediate effect," the release added.
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Upset over crackdown on farmers, BKU (Ugrahan) to skip meeting called by Punjab govt
Chandigarh (PTI): Amid the crackdown on the protesting farmers by Punjab Police, Bharti Kisan Union (Ugrahan) has said it would not be part of a meeting with farmers leaders called by the Punjab government on Friday.
On Thursday, leaders of Samyukta Kisan Morcha (SKM) said the Punjab government has invited them for a meeting with state Agriculture Minister Gurmeet Singh Khuddian on Friday.
BKU (Ugrahan) was also invited to the meeting. The invitation came ahead of the SKM's call for a march to the Punjab Vidhan Sabha on March 26.
BKU (Ugrahan) said while it favours dialogues to resolve any issue, "the question arises whether having the meeting under these circumstances (detention of farmers) is right".
"What is the guarantee that those invited for the talks will not be arrested later," BKU (Ugrahan) president Joginder Singh Ugrahan asked in a video message.
"...So, we have decided that we will not be part of the meeting," the BKU chief said.
The SKM and the BKU (Ugrahan) were not part of the over a year-long farmers' protests at the Shambhu and Khanauri border points between Haryana and Punjab.
The SKM (Non-Political) and the Kisan Mazdoor Morcha (KMM) spearheaded the protests since February last year before Punjab Police cleared the two protest sites on Wednesday.
The police also detained several protesting farmers, including some prominent leaders such as Sarwan Singh Pandher and Jagjit Singh Dallewal in Mohali, and demolished all the temporary structures at both the border points, leading to traffic restoration on the busy Shambhu-Ambala highway after more than a year.
Vehicular movement on the Khanauri border point is also set to resume.
The BKU (Ugrahan) chief also claimed that many farmers owing allegiance to the SKM were taken into custody on Thursday during protests at some parts of Punjab against the police action.
It is still not clear how many farmers have been arrested by the police, he said.
The SKM is demanding implementation of the state's agricultural policy, purchase of six crops at MSP by the state government, a legal framework for debt relief after coordinating with the Centre, ownership rights of land tillers, and payment of sugarcane arrears.
