NEW DELHI: Former Union Minister P Chidambaram on Wednesday moved the Delhi high court contesting the trial court’s cognisance of money laundering charges against him in the INX media case and argued that the mandatory sanction to prosecute him wasn’t obtained.
Advocate N Hariharan appearing for the senior Congress leader argued that in 2021, when the trial court took cognisance of the charges under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), the Enforcement Directorate (ED) failed to secure the requisite sanction for prosecuting him in the case.
Hariharan contended that since Chidambaram was a public servant at the time of the alleged offence, obtaining such a sanction was a legal necessity under the Criminal Procedure Code (CrPC) and PMLA provisions.
The ED’s counsel countered the argument, asserting that the money laundering allegations against Chidambaram were not linked to his official duties as a public servant, thereby negating the requirement for prior sanction.
Justice Manoj Kumar Ohri is set to hear the matter on November 28. The CBI registered the case on May 15, 2017, alleging irregularities in a Foreign Investment Promotion Board (FIPB) clearance granted to INX Media for receiving Rs 305 crore in foreign funds in 2007 during Chidambaram’s tenure as the Finance Minister.
Chidambaram was arrested in 2019 by the CBI in the corruption case and subsequently taken into custody by the ED for the related money laundering investigation. Hariharan, along with advocates Arshdeep Singh Khurana and Akshat Gupta, argued that the trial court had overstepped by taking cognisance on March 24, 2021, without the ED securing prior sanction. The plea, therefore, urged the court to quash the cognisance as well as all consequential proceedings in the matter.
The plea argued without such a sanction from the authorities, the trial court had no jurisdiction to proceed with the matter. Recently, the high court stayed the trial court proceedings against Chidambaram in the Aircel-Maxis case lodged by the ED after he made a similar challenge against the chargesheet cognizance.
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HC rejects plea for Sanatana Dharma Board
The Delhi high court on Wednesday dismissed a petition seeking the establishment of a Board for the Protection of Sanatana Dharma, akin to the Waqf Board, to safeguard the interests and customs of the Hindu religion. A bench comprising Chief Justice Manmohan and Justice Tushar Rao Gedela ruled that the matter fell under the ambit of policymaking, which lies beyond the judiciary’s scope. “We cannot do anything in this,” remarked Chief Justice Manmohan during the proceedings. The court granted the petitioner, Sanatan Hindu Sewa Sangh Trust, the liberty to approach the government for redressal. The petitioner argued despite submitting representations to the government, no action was taken.