The Supreme Court on Friday stayed any possible re-arrest of P. Chidambaram by the Enforcement Directorate in the INX Media case till Monday, when it will take up the three pleas the Congress leader has moved before it.
One of the pleas, the latest, challenges Thursday’s special CBI court ruling that sent Chidambaram to CBI custody till Monday for questioning in the case.
The other two, which were denied “urgent hearing” at the apex court on Wednesday, contest Tuesday’s Delhi High Court judgment denying Chidambaram anticipatory bail against possible arrests by the CBI and the Enforcement Directorate.
Since the CBI has already arrested Chidambaram, the relief from re-arrest by the ED currently signifies a sort of moral victory. However, if the apex court on Monday accepts the plea to quash his CBI remand and extends the relief from re-arrest by the ED, he can walk free.
Solicitor-general Tushar Mehta, representing the ED, opposed any stay on a re-arrest.
But the bench of Justices R. Banumathi and A.S. Bopanna granted the interim protection on the ground that the other accused in the ED case had already received bail from Delhi High Court.
