New Delhi: Former finance minister P Chidambaram’s lawyer has asked the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) to specify under which law they have asked his client to appear before them within two hours in the INX Media case.
In a letter to the CBI after the agency paid a visit to Chidambaram’s residence and put up a notice, lawyer Arshdeep Singh Khurana said: “I am instructed to state that your notice fails to mention the provision of law under which my client has been issued a notice to appear within two hours.
“Furthermore, my client is exercising the rights available to him in law & had approached the Supreme Court on August 20 seeking urgent reliefs in respect of the order dismissing his anticipatory bail (in INX media case).”
Khurana added that the senior Congress leader had been permitted by the Supreme Court to “mention the urgent Special Leave Petition against the order before court at 10:30 am today. I, therefore, request you not to take any coercive action against my client till then & await the hearing at 10:30 am”.
The Delhi High Court on Tuesday refused to grant Chidambaram any protection from arrest in the INX Media Case, saying he seems to be the "kingpin" and "key conspirator" in the case and needs to be interrogated in custody for the investigation to be effective.
Holding that the INX media scam was a "classic case of money laundering", the court said the twin facts which have weighed to deny pre-arrest bail to Chidambaram are "gravity" of the offence and "evasive" replies given by him to questions put to him while he was under protective cover extended to him by the court.
Chidambaram, 73, also failed to get any immediate relief from the Supreme Court that was approached shortly after the high court cancelled the interim protection from arrest, paving the way for the CBI and the ED to apprehend him.
The CBI team, which reached Chidambaram’s home hours after the high court verdict, left the premises after confirming he was not present. A team of the Enforcement Directorate (ED) also arrived later.
The CBI team, which comprised a few officials of the superintendent of police rank, did not make clear if it had gone to his residence to arrest Chidambaram for alleged irregularities in foreign investment clearance to INX media during his tenure as finance minister.
Officials said that the team returned to the CBI headquarters and discussed with senior officers the future course of action.
Later on Tuesday night, the CBI again visited Chidambaram's house and pasted a notice on the gate. Signed by CBI investigating officer and Deputy Superintendent of Police R Parthasarathy, it directed the former minister to present himself within two hours of the receipt of the notice for further investigation in the case. The communication was emailed to Chidambaram as well.
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