- By Abhinav Gupta
- Fri, 06 Sep 2019 07:07 AM (IST)
- Source:JND
New Delhi | Jagran News Desk: Former union finance minister P Chidambaram was put behind bars on Thursday hours after a CBI court sent him to two-week judicial custody in the INX Media case in an unprecedented setback to the Congress veteran who even offered to surrender to the ED in a desperate attempt to be spared the ignominy of going to prison.
On Chidambaram's application seeking direction to ensure safe detention while in judicial custody, the Solicitor General Tushar Mehta assured the same.
The court allowed him to carry his medicines to jail. Considering that he has Z-security, the court directed Chidambaram be kept in separate cell in the jail.
With regard to Chidambaram's plea seeking to surrender in the money laundering case, the court issued notice to ED.
During the hearing, Chidambaram's counsel Kapil Sibal opposed the CBI plea for judicial custody and said that the veteran Congress leader was ready to go into the ED custody for interrogation in the money laundering case arising out of the scam in which the apex court on Thursday refused to grant him pre-arrest bail.
Chidambaram was brought to the special court hours after he withdrew his petition challenging the non-bailable warrant (NBW) issued against him following which he was sent to the CBI custody.
His 15-day CBI custody, ordered by the special court in five spells, which started after his arrest on August 21 night, ends today.
He was produced before Special Judge Ajay Kumar Kuhar, who on Tuesday sent him to the CBI custody till today after taking note of the Supreme Court's order which had said that Chidambaram would be in the CBI custody till September 5.
Earlier in the day, the Supreme Court denied him anticipatory bail in the INX Media money laundering case saying granting him relief would "hamper the investigation" and the ED has to be given "sufficient freedom" in conducting the probe.
The apex court, which held that this is "not a fit case" to grant relief to Chidambaram, said economic offences stand as a different class as they affect "economic fabric of the society" and "extraordinary power" of granting anticipatory bail has to be exercised sparingly in such cases.
The top court said granting anticipatory bail at the stage of investigation might frustrate the probe agency in interrogating the accused, collecting useful information as also material which might have been concealed.
The apex court dismissed Chidambaram's appeal challenging the August 20 verdict of the Delhi High Court denying him anticipatory bail in the case lodged by Enforcement Directorate (ED) saying there were no grounds warranting interference with the order.
The high court had also rejected his pre-arrest bail in the corruption case lodged by CBI in which he was arrested on August 21 night and has been subjected to custodial interrogation for 15 days, which comes to an end today.
Hours after the apex court order, another special court granted Chidambaram and his son Karti anticipatory bail in the Aircel Maxis cases.