Former Finance Minister Chidambaram arrested after high drama at residence
In a dramatic turn of events, former Finance Minister and senior Congress leader, P Chidambaram, has been arrested at his Jor Bagh residence in New Delhi after he failed to get interim relief from the Supreme Court. Earlier, two teams of CBI, including senior officers, climbed his wall to enter his residence after he returned home from a press conference at Congress headquarters.
A couple of hours back, Chidambaram had arrived at Congress headquarters; this was his first appearance in 27 hours, since his anticipatory bail plea was rejected by Delhi High Court on Tuesday. The former Union Finance Minister faces arrest for his alleged involvement in the INX Media case. Addressing press, he said he has "not been accused of any offense".
The drama and spectacle being enacted by the agencies is to simply sensationalise and satisfy the voyeuristic pleasure of some.
— Karti P Chidambaram (@KartiPC) August 21, 2019
Earlier in the day, the Supreme Court refused an urgent hearing of Chidambaram's bail plea, referring it to Chief Justice of India, Ranjan Gogoi. CJI Gogoi agreed to hear the matter on Friday when his lawyers Kapil Sibal and Salman Khurshid requested for the same. With this, the apex court gave more time to CBI and ED, which are probing Chidambaram separately.
Notably, the CBI paid a visit to Chidambaram's house twice on Tuesday, after his bail plea was rejected. After the Congress stalwart did not turn up at his residence, ED issued a lookout circular for him, which stopped him from leaving the country. Interestingly, Chidambaram's son Karti also faces corruption charges in the case. Karti is an MP from Tamil Nadu's Sivaganga.
At the press meet, Chidambaram said all he wanted was a fair hearing. "I was aghast that I was accused of hiding from law. On contrary, I was engaged in pursuit of justice. Now I shall walk with clear conscience and head held high. In the name of freedom, I can only hope and pray that investigative agencies will respect the law," he added.
To note, Priyanka Gandhi Vadra and her brother Rahul Gandhi tweeted in Chidambaram's support accusing BJP of targeting him. While Priyanka reminded about his glorious political career as the Finance and Home minister, Rahul attacked Prime Minister Narendra Modi saying his government was misusing power.
