Karti allowed refund of ₹20-crore deposit
NEW DELHI: The Supreme Court on Friday allowed a refund of ~20 crore deposited by member of Parliament Karti Chidambaram as security when he was permitted by the top court to travel abroad on two separate occasions in 2019.
A bench headed by Chief Justice of India SA Bobde allowed the plea by the Congress MP from Sivaganga who deposited ~10 crore each on two occasions with the court registry as a precondition to travel abroad. The Supreme Court had passed orders in January and May 2019 granting permission to Karti to travel abroad. After his return from the foreign trip, which was allowed by the January 2019 order, Karti filed a plea in the Supreme Court for the return of ~10 crore.
However, the bench headed by then Chief Justice of India Ranjan Gogoi turned down that prayer. Gogoi told Karti to “pay attention to your constituency” while dismissing his plea on May 29, 2019. Karti is being probed by the Enforcement Directorate and the Central Bureau of Investigation in the INX Media case for his role in the alleged irregularities in the Foreign Investment Promotion Board’s clearance to the group for receiving overseas funds of ~307 crore. The clearance was given when Karti’s father P Chidambaram was serving as the Union finance minister.
During the investigation, the ED claimed to have found documents linking INX Media to a
SC HAD PASSED ORDERS IN JANUARY AND MAY 2019 GRANTING PERMISSION TO KARTI TO TRAVEL ABROAD
company associated with Karti Chidambaram.he was arrested by the CBI in February 2018 but was later granted bail by the Delhi high court on the condition that he would not travel abroad without permission from the court. Subsequently, the Supreme Court on two separate occasions allowed him to travel abroad after depositing Rs 10 crore as security.
The CBI also registered an FIR against P Chidambaram in 2017 for offences under the IPC and the Prevention of Corruption Act. The ED lodged separate case against him under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act in 2018.
Former Union minister and senior Congress leader P Chidambaram was arrested and spent over 100 days in Tihar jail under judicial custody before he was granted bail by the Supreme Court on December 4.