The Enforcement Directorate (ED) raided the residences and offices of many of former Finance Minister P Chidambaram’s relatives on Friday.
Raids are on six locations in Chennai and Kolkata in relation to the Aircel-Maxis case. They are being conducted at the residences of Karti Chidambaram’s relatives Sujay Sambamoorthy and Ramaji Natrajan in Thiruvanmiyur and Alwarpet in Chennai, the residence and office of Karti’s uncle Sadavel Kailasam in Teynampet and the residence and office of Manoj Mohanka in Kolkata. This is part of the investigation into the Foreign Investment Promotion Board (FIPB) clearance given to the Aircel-Maxis deal in 2006.
Responding to the raids, former finance minister P Chidambaram said, “I will not be intimidated. As and when the attachment order is served, suitable action will be taken in accordance with law,” reported The Hindu.
This comes just days after the Supreme Court allowed Karti Chidambaram to visit the United Kingdom from December 1 to 10 for his daughter’s admission at Cambridge University.
In September, Karti Chidambaram was summoned by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) for allegedly receiving bribes from Malaysian company Maxis through a number of companies in exchange for FIPB clearance from Chidambaram.
The ED had also attached Rs. 1.16 crore worth of assets belonging to Karti Chidambaram in the case. An ED official told IANS then said that the probe agency issued a provisional attachment order under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), and bank accounts and fixed deposits worth Rs 90 lakh were attached after he tried to "sell most of his assets and closed certain bank accounts".
The official also stated that approval given in the Aircel-Maxis case was given by former Finance Minister P Chidambaram was beyond his mandate.
In April, BJP leader Subramanian Swamy made a submission to a two-judge bench comprising Justice JS Khehar and Justice DY Chandrachud that he received a letter from the CBI confirming that a probe was being undertaken against Chidambaram. He asked the court to direct the CBI to submit a status report on the probe.
Swamy had then claimed that Chidambaram did not follow procedure while giving FIPB clearance. As the deal was worth Rs 3500 crore, Swamy stated that it should have been referred to the Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs, which is the only agency which can approve foreign investment above Rs 600 crore.