NEW DELHI: The HC has expedited the hearing on Congress leader and former Union Minister P Chidambaram’s petition challenging a trial court’s decision to take cognisance of the Enforcement Directorate’s chargesheet in the INX Media money laundering case. Initially set for August, the hearing will now be held on May 13.
Justice Ravinder Dudeja, while granting the request for an earlier date, directed both parties to refrain from pressing arguments on charges before the trial court. “Considering the urgency, the matter is advanced to May 13. Meanwhile, both parties have jointly agreed not to press for arguments on charges before the trial court,” the court said.
Senior Advocate N Hariharan, appearing on behalf of Chidambaram, had urged the court to reschedule the hearing, citing the trial court’s plan to begin arguments on charges from April 7. He further requested that the trial court be directed to keep proceedings in abeyance until the HC decides the plea, arguing that going forward with arguments and framing charges would render the petition meaningless.
The ED, represented by Counsel Zoheb Hossain, countered this by stating that the allegations against Chidambaram did not pertain to his official duties. Hossain contended that advocating for the protection of his son’s business interests could not be considered a legitimate part of his ministerial duties.
Chidambaram’s plea asserts that the trial court’s decision to take cognisance of the money laundering offence was made without the ED obtaining the required sanction under Section 197(1) of the Code of Criminal Procedure (CrPC) for prosecuting him, despite his position as a public servant at the time of the alleged offence.
He maintains that such sanction is a mandatory prerequisite under Section 197(1) CrPC, read with Section 65 of the PMLA.