Chidambaram arrested in Rs3,050m irregularities case

NEW DELHI: Former Indian minister P. Chidambaram was arrested on Wednesday evening in New Delhi, says a Web Report.

The CBI is investigating Chidambaram in the INX Media case, which it had registered on May 15, 2017 alleging irregularities in the clearance granted to the media group for receiving overseas funds of Rs3050 million in 2007 during his tenure as finance minister.

Earlier on Wednesday, in a dramatic move, the former finance minister, facing arrest in cases of corruption and money laundering, appeared at the Congress headquarters to declare his innocence and asked probe agencies to "respect" the law until the Supreme Court heard his bail plea on Friday. Chidambaram, who failed to get immediate relief from the Supreme Court on his plea to stay the Delhi High Court order dismissing his anticipatory bail petition on Tuesday, put up a strong defence of himself and his family members, saying none of them has been directly accused of any offence by the probe agencies in the FIR or the charge sheet.

Rejecting reports of his evading the law, he said that the charges against him and his son were "nothing further from truth". He said he was working with his lawyers through the last night, preparing his papers for his bail application, which was filed before the Supreme Court earlier. "Respect for law can mean only one thing, wait for Supreme Court justice on Friday," he said, suggesting that the probe agencies should not arrest him until the apex court decides on his bail plea.

"Until Friday and beyond, let's hope the lamp of liberty will shine bright and illuminate the whole country," he said. "I will respect law even if applied with an unequal hand by probe agencies," he said reading out from a written statement and flanked by several senior Congress leaders.