New Delhi: A city court on Friday (January 10) directed the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) to give three-day prior written notice to Congress Member of Parliament (MP) Karti Chidambaram, son of former Union minister P Chidambaram, in a fresh corruption case registered by the agency alleging he gave relief to a liquor company over the duty-free sale of its whisky.
Special judge Kaveri Baweja passed the order on a plea filed by the Congress MP seeking anticipatory bail in the fresh case.
Join investigation and cooperate in process of investigation, court directed Karti Chidambaram
The judge directed the Congress MP to join the investigation and cooperate in the process of investigation as and when required by the CBI.
“The investigating agency shall give three-days written notice prior to the applicant (Karti Chidambaram) in case his arrest is required after he joins the investigation of the case upon return to the country on January 12, 2025. The applicant shall join the investigation of the case upon his return to the country and cooperate in the process of investigation, as and when so required in accordance with law,” the judge said.
Subject FIR mala fide and borne out of political vendetta, Karti Chidambaram claimed
Karti Chidambarm claimed in his anticipatory bail plea that the “Subject FIR is mala fide and is borne out of political vendetta” and that the CBI is acting at the behest of the central government to malign his and his father P Chidambaram’s reputation.
What are the allegations?
The CBI registered the fresh case against Karti Chidambaram for allegedly lifting a ban imposed on Diageo Scotland by India Tourism Development Corporation (ITDC) on duty-free sale of its whisky.
The CBI has alleged that suspicious payment was made by Diageo Scotland and Sequoia Capitals to Advantage Strategic Consulting Pvt. Ltd (ASCPL), “an entity controlled” by Karti Chidambaram and his close aide S Bhaskararaman.
The fresh case stems from a preliminary enquiry initiated by the CBI in 2018 to look into alleged irregularities in granting Foreign Investment Promotion Board (FIPB) clearance when P Chidambaram was the Union finance minister.
Earlier in 2018, Karti Chidambarm was arrested by the CBI in the INX media case and his father P Chidambaram was arrested later in 2019 by the CBI and Enforcement Directorate (ED) in the case.
