Aircel-Maxis case: P Chidambaram, son Karti get regular bail
In a major relief to former Union Finance Minister P Chidambaram and his son Karti Chidambaram, a Delhi court on Wednesday granted regular bail to the duo in the Aircel-Maxis case. Both were on anticipatory bail till now. The court accepted the bail bonds of Rs one lakh each in the cases filed by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) and Enforcement Directorate (ED).
According to a report by news agency PTI, the accused had sought relief after they appeared before the court in pursuance of summons issued against them. It may be noted that the court had taken cognizance of the chargesheets filed by the probe agencies in the matter. The duo had moved their application through their lawyer Arshdeep Singh.
The case pertains to alleged irregularities in the Foreign Investment Promotion Board approval in the Aircel-Maxis deal when P Chidambaram was the Union Finance Minister in 2006 under the Congress-led United Progressive Alliance (UPA)-I government. The CBI and ED had alleged that Chidambaram approved the settlement beyond his capacity as finance minister, benefiting some persons and receiving kickbacks.
In 2018, ED filed a chargesheet against Chidambaram and former finance ministry officials, accusing them of conspiring with foreign investors to clear their venture. However, the case was stalled later due to a delay in obtaining sanctions for the prosecution of all the accused.
Last month, the Supreme Court had allowed Karti Chidambaram to go abroad. A bench of justice AM Khanwilkar, Justice Dinesh Maheshwari, and Justice CT Ravikumar had said that he will be allowed to go abroad on the same conditions that had been imposed earlier. Senior advocate Kapil Sibal, appearing for Karti, apprised the bench about the application seeking permission to go abroad.
