New Delhi [India], February 6 (ANI): The Delhi High Court has scheduled the hearing for Congress leader Karti Chidambaram’s plea to quash a fresh FIR against him by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) on April 16.
The bench of Justice Vikas Mahajan on Thursday deferred the hearing after noting that the petitioner’s counsel himself was seeking adjournment in the matter.
The new case accuses Chidambaram of providing favourable treatment to Diageo Scotland, an alcoholic beverage company, by intervening to lift a ban on the duty-free sale of its whisky.
In his petition, Chidambaram sought the quashing of the FIR, which includes charges under sections 120B, 420, and 471 of the IPC, as well as sections 8, 9, 13(2), and 13(1)(d) of the Prevention of Corruption (PC) Act. According to the CBI, he is accused of accepting bribes through sham contracts and share transactions.
Chidambaram contends that he was never called to join the preliminary inquiry, and no public servant allegedly influenced by him is named in the FIR.
He also pointed out the significant delay in filing the FIR, which names no specific public servant, and argued that no prima facie case has been established against him.
The plea further stated that registration of the Impugned FIR itself is “illegal” since the impugned FIR was registered against “unidentified public servants without obtaining prior approval under Section 17-A PC Act,” as required. “Thus, any inquiry or investigation carried out by any police officer under registration of this Impugned FIR is also illegal.”
According to the CBI, the case involves an alleged suspicious payment to Advantage Strategic Consulting Pvt. Ltd, reportedly controlled by Karti P. Chidambaram, made by Diageo Scotland and Sequoia Capital, according to the CBI FIR.
“An enquiry revealed that among various FIPB proposals investigated, it was found that Diageo Scotland and Sequoia Capital suspiciously transferred funds to Advantage Strategic Consulting Pvt. Ltd., an entity controlled by Karti P. Chidambaram and his close associate, S. Bhaskararaman,” the agency stated. (ANI)
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