India / ED files chargesheet against Chidambaram, his son in INX Media case

New Delhi: The Enforcement Directorate has filed a charge sheet against senior Congress leader P Chidambaram and his son Karti Chidambaram in connection with its money laundering probe related in INX Media, people familiar with the development told.

The chargesheet, they said, was filed on Monday before the court of special CBI judge Ajay Kumar Kumar naming both father and son alleging that they were the beneficial owners of several shell firms that were incorporated in India and abroad in connection with a Foreign Investment Promotion Board (FIPB) approval given to the INX Media group during Chidambaram’s tenure as the union finance minister.

P Chidambaram was arrested by the agency in October last year inside the Tihar jail in the case. Earlier, the senior Congress leader was arrested by the CBI in August, 2019.

Currently both of them are out on bail.

ED has alleged earlier during court hearings that “for FIPB approval, Peter and Indrani Mukerjea (then owners of INX) met P Chidambaram so that there was no hold up or delay in their application. P Chidambaram asked for his son’s business interests to be kept in mind. ED identified payments of Rs 3.09 crore by Peter Mukerjea to ASCPL (Advantage Strategic Consultancy Pvt Ltd) and associated entities controlled by Karti P Chidambaram through manipulated debit notes.”

“During investigation, it was admitted that debit notes were raised on the directions of Karti Chidambaram to show some transaction which in fact did not occur,” the agency has alleged. It said the money so received by associated entities was channelled back into ASCPL.

“The funds received by ASCPL were invested and ASCPL also purchased shares of Vasan Health Care. A part of these shares was sold at a profit of nearly Rs 41 crore. ASCPL also earned Rs.18.49 crore from sale of shares in another company for an amount of Rs 29.49 crore. These funds arising from sale of laundered property is also property involved in money laundering,” it has claimed.

The agency had, in February 2019, attached properties worth Rs 54 crore allegedly belonging to Karti in Spain, the UK and India.

Indrani Mukherjea, in her statement to CBI, has claimed that US dollars 5 million and US dollars 4,50,000 were transferred in overseas account of Congress leader in 2007 and 2009 respectively after getting money from INX’s foreign investors while a cash payment of Rs 1 crore was made to Karti in Delhi in 2009. HT has copy of her statement.

When contacted, Karti Chidabaram said on Tuesday “I will not comment until something is served to me fomally.”