CHIDAMBARAM’S CUSTODY EXTENDED
NEW DELHI: The Supreme Court will on Friday hear a bail plea by former Union minister P Chidambaram, who has been in custody since August 21 in a corruption case filed against him by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) in connection with the INX Media deal.
Chidambaram’s petition is listed before a bench headed by justice R Banumathi, which on September 5 dismissed the Congress leader’s request to grant him a pre-arrest bail in moneylaundering proceedings by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) that were initiated simultaneously with the CBI case in INX Media matter.
In the SC, Chidambaram has challenged the September 30 judgment of the Delhi high court, which dismissed his petition seeking regular bail on the grounds that, being a former Union home and finance minister and a serving Rajya Sabha member, he wielded sufficient clout to influence the witnesses.
Chidambaram’s lawyer, senior advocate Kapil Sibal, mentioned the matter urgently before a bench led by justice NV Ramana. Sibal approached the bench because Chief Justice Ranjan Gogoi is not taking up any freshly mentioned matters due to the Ayodhya title suit hearing.
Justice Ramana assured Sibal that he would forward the request to the CJI for urgent listing so that it could be taken up on Friday. Sibal asked for an immediate hearing as the court shuts down on October 7 for a weeklong Dussehra break.
The assurance came after Sibal expressed apprehension over the matter getting delayed further. Sibal appeared to be referring to how Chidambaram’s August 21 plea challenging the HC decision revoking his interim protection from arrest, was not taken up the same day. That evening, a CBI team arrested Chidambaram from his residence.
Meanwhile, a Delhi court on Thursday extended Chidambaram’s judicial custody till October 17 and allowed him home-cooked food once a day after his counsels told the court that he had lost weight during his time in custody, and was suffering from indigestion.
Special judge Ajay Kumar Kuhar sent Chidambaram to Tihar Jail for another 14 days after he was produced at the Rouse Avenue court complex at the end of his judicial custody.
Appearing for the CBI, advocate Amit Mahajan on Thursday sought directions from the court to extend Chidambaram’s judicial custody. Representing Chidambaram, Sibal and senior advocate Abhishek Manu Singhvi did not oppose the plea and submitted that he has already put forth their arguments at earlier hearings.
“The investigation is pending. It is informed that the bail application of the accused has been dismissed by the high court on September 30. Considering the facts mentioned in the application, and that there is no change in the circumstances as noted in the earlier orders, the judicial remand of the accused is extended till September 17,” the court ruled.
The CBI is probing alleged irregularities in the grant of Foreign Investment Promotion Board clearance to INX Media for receiving foreign investment to the tune of ~305 crore in 2007, when Chidambaram was finance minister in Congress-led United Progressive Alliance (UPA) government. CBI registered an FIR in the case on May 15, 2017.