NEW DELHI: A Delhi High Court judge Monday recused from hearing the Enforcement Directorate's (ED) plea challenging a trial court's order directing it to provide various documents to former Union Minister P Chidambaram and his son Karti Chidambaram concerning the INX Media money laundering case.
Justice Chandra Dhari Singh said, "I am not hearing this matter. I am transferring it."
The judge said the petition be listed before another bench on March 16.
The ED, through advocate Amit Mahajan, has challenged the trial court's January 25, 2020 order by which the agency was directed to provide a scanned copy of the list of all unrelied upon documents to prevent any further delay in the case.
The trial court's order was passed on two applications by Chidambaram and his son Karti seeking inspection of unrelied upon documents by the ED.
In the same case, the Delhi High Court on November 10, 2021, had dismissed the CBI's plea challenging the trial court's order allowing inspection of documents by Chidambaram and his son in the INX Media corruption case.
Chidambaram was arrested by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) in the INX Media corruption case on August 21, 2019. On October 16 that year, the ED arrested him in a related money-laundering case.
Six days later, on October 22, 2019, the apex court had granted bail to Chidambaram in the case lodged by the CBI. In the ED case, he had got bail on December 4, 2019.
The CBI had registered its case on May 15, 2017, alleging irregularities in a Foreign Investment Promotion Board (FIPB) clearance granted to the INX Media group for receiving overseas funds of Rs 305 crore in 2007 during Chidambaram's tenure as finance minister.
Subsequently, the ED had lodged the money laundering case.
The former Union Minister's son Karti Chidambaram was arrested by CBI in February 2018 and he was granted bail in March 2018 in the INX Media corruption case.