WATCH | DMK's Senthil Balaji Breaks Down Post ED Arrest; Admitted To Hospital

Tamil Nadu Power and Excise Minister V Senthil Balaji was arrested by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Wednesday following an investigation into a money laundering case.

Following his detention in the early hours of Wednesday, the ED took Balaji to the Omandurar government hospital in Chennai for a medical assessment after he complained of uneasiness.

State Minister P K Sekar Babu claimed there were 'symptoms' Balaji has been 'tortured.'

TV visuals showed Balaji being uneasy while being brought to the Government Medical College, Omandurar Government Estate in the city.

"He is in the ICU. He was in an unconscious state and did not respond when he called him by his name. He is under observation... doctors say there is variation in his ECG (electrocardiogram)... there are symptoms of torture," Babu told reporters.

The ED had launched searches at locations linked to Balaji at Chennai, Karur and Erode, on Tuesday, months after the Supreme Court allowed police and ED probe into an alleged cash for jobs scam against the DMK strongman.

Balaji was earlier with the AIADMK and had been Transport Minister in the late Jayalalithaa-led Cabinet. TN minister Udhayanidhi Stalin was among those who visited the hospital.