New Delhi: A special court on Monday sent former Finance minister P Chidambaram to four more days of CBI custody till August 30 in the INX Media case after the probe agency said “certain evidence” had emerged and that the Congress leader’s confrontation with a co-accused during interrogation was incomplete. The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) had sought extension of Chidambaram’s custody by five days to confront him with certain emails and to unearth larger conspiracy in the corruption case in the INX Media scam.
Special Judge Ajay Kumar Kuhar said the CBI demand was “justified” for further interrogating the Congress leader. Chidambaram, 73, was produced in the special court on the expiry of his four-day CBI custody which was granted to the agency on August 22, a day after he was arrested amid high drama from his Delhi residence. His counsel Kapil Sibal opposed the CBI plea during the hearing, saying the agency was not disclosing “full facts” of the case to the court. “The CBI’s investigation is clouded. This method of seeking remand behind curtains is not fair.”
The Supreme Court, meanwhile, extended till Tuesday the protection from arrest given to Chidambaram in the separate money laundering case lodged by the Enforcement Directorate(ED). The ED’s affidavit claimed that the former Finance Minister was in touch with people running shell companies abroad allegedly connected to him. But the Supreme Court’s protection to Chidambaram from ED did not amount to much as a Special CBI court here extended his CBI custody till August 30, allowing the latter to question him in custody for four more days.
Appearing for the probe agency at the trial court later in the day, Solicitor-General Tushar Mehta argued that five more days of Chidambaram’s custody is required as the investigators need to confront him with other co-accused in the case. He added that the senior Congress leader was confronted with one co-accused on Monday.
