The Enforcement Directorate on Thursday filed a charge-sheet against former Union minister P. Chidambaram in the Aircel-Maxis money laundering case. The agency has named nine accused in the case, including P. Chidambaram, S. Bhaskaraman and four Maxis companies.
CBI Special Judge O.P. Saini fixed November 26 for consideration of the charge-sheet.
The ED move came soon after the Delhi High Court extended interim protection to Chidambaram in the INX media case till November 29. It is to be noted that the Delhi High Court had earlier granted protection from arrest to Chidambaram and his son Karti in the Aircel-Maxis case till November 1.
The senior Congress leader's role has come under the scanner of investigating agencies in the Rs 3,500-crore Aircel-Maxis deal and the INX Media case in irregularities amounting to Rs 305 crore.
In September, the Supreme Court had urged the ED to complete the probe in the Aircel-Maxis deal case within three months. The ED had also pressed the CBI special court for custodial interrogation of Karti, in the Aircel-Maxis case. The Supreme Court, had on different occassions, extended the interim protection to Chidambaram and his son in the Aircel-Maxis case. Chidambaram and Karti have been questioned by the ED on various occasions, even though the politician has not been arrayed as an accused. Both have denied the allegations levelled against them by the CBI and the ED.
Thursday's developments come close in heels with the unrest within the CBI after the government sent the premium investigative agency's director Alok Verma and special director Rajesh Asthana on leave. Both Verma and Asthana had named each other on charges of bribery.
In June, Rajeshwar Singh, a joint director in the Enforcement Directorate who probed the 2G scam and Aircel-Maxis case, had accused Finance Secretary Hasmukh Adhia of "siding with scamsters and their affiliates", in an apparent reference to Aircel-Maxis case.
Following the CBI tussle, THE WEEK had reported that Dubai-based businessman Manoj Prasad, named by the CBI in its FIR as the middleman who was allegedly collecting bribe for Asthana in the Moin Qureshi case, was also the person behind the alleged complaint generated by the Research and Analysis Wing (R&AW) against Rajeshwar Singh. The alleged R&AW report had accused Singh of being in touch with an alleged ISI agent in Dubai, Danish Shah.
