Karti Chidambaram, son of P Chidambaram, was granted bail by the Delhi High Court
Highlights
- CBI said it was "impermissible" for high court to entertain bail plea
- Karti Chidambaram is accused of government clearance for INX Media
- He has said the case was result of "political vendetta"
The bail granted to Karti Chidambaram, son of former Union Minister P Chidambaram, in the INX Media case, has been challenged in the Supreme Court by the Central Bureau of Investigation. The 46-year-old businessman was
granted bail by the Delhi High Court in March after being questioned in custody by the agency for 23 days.
In its appeal to the top court, the CBI said it was "impermissible" for the high court to entertain the bail plea when a similar application was pending before the trial court. The agency also said the court "erroneously" conducted a "detailed examination" of evidence on merits while granting bail -- which "seriously prejudiced" its case.
The court, while granting bail, had said relief should not be refused to an accused unless the crime was of the "highest magnitude" entailing "severe punishment".
Karti Chidambaram has been accused of getting government clearance for foreign investment to the tune of around Rs. 300 crore for INX Media- a television company then owned by Peter and Indrani Mukerjea - in exchange for bribes. Investigators said he used the influence of his father, who was the Union Finance Minister in the UPA government at the time.
He was arrested after Peter and Indrani Mukerjea made a series of allegations linking him and P Chidambaram to the bribes they claimed they gave. The couple are currently in jail, accused of being involved in the murder of Indrani Mukerjea's daughter Sheena Bora.
The former minister and his son have said the case was the result of "political vendetta". Karti Chidambaram has maintained that he was being targetted since he is the son of a politician.