New Delhi, Feb. 28 (Agencies): The Central Bureau of Investigation on Wednesday arrested Karti Chidambaram, son of former Union finance Minister P. Chidambaram, in connection with foreign investment violations in INX Media.
Karti was detained at Chennai airport when he returned from the United Kingdom, and was put on a flight to Delhi, where he is to be produced before a court that handles cases of the CBI.
Abhishek Dayal, CBI spokesman, said: ”The reasons for the arrest will be provided in the court.”
Karti’s father has served twice as finance minister in the Congress-led coalition that ran India for a decade in the noughties. Chidambaram senior has been a vocal critic of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and current Finance Minister Arun Jaitley.
Congress spokesman Randeep Singh Surjewala tweeted that the Modi government was continuing its “vendetta” against Chidambaram, and called the arrest a diversionary tactic to hide ”scams and colossal corruption”.
The CBI says Karti received money from INX Media for getting it clearances for foreign investment. It is also probing similar irregularities in the Aircel-Maxis deal in 2006.
The agency had summoned Karti for questioning earlier but he had sought stay orders from various courts.
The CBI filed an FIR or first information report on May 15 last year. It says Karti had received Rs 10 lakh for brokering the deal. The CBI has alleged Karti also received money from INX media to scuttle a tax probe.
At that time, INX Media was owned at the time by former STAR India boss Peter Mukerjea and his wife Indrani, who are currently in jail on charges of murdering Indrani's daughter Sheena Bora.
The Enforcement Directorate has also registered a money laundering case.
The CBI and the ED had carried out a series of raids on the houses and offices owned by the Chidambarams.
The government had sought to prevent Karti from going abroad as it felt he would try and close his accounts there.
But, in November, the Supreme Court allowed Karti to go to the UK for his daughter's admission in Cambridge University.
According to the CBI, INX Media clearly states in its records that Rs 10 lakh was given to Advantage Strategic Consulting, a firm “indirectly” owned by Karti, for management consultancy charged towards FIPB notification and clarification.
The FIR also alleges that invoices of approximately Rs 3.5 crore were raised in favour of INX group in the name of other companies in which Karti had substantial interests “directly or indirectly”.