The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) today told the Supreme Court that there was “good, cogent” reason for issuing the look out circular (LOC) against Karti Chidambaram, son of former Union minister P. Chidambaram, in the Foreign Investment Promotion Board (FIPB) clearance case.
The agency agreed to produce an interrogation report of Karti Chidambaram before the Supreme Court on September 11, the next date of hearing in this case.
A Bench, headed by Chief Justice Dipak Misra, took on record the documents placed by the CBI in a sealed cover in connection with the case.
The Bench, also comprising Justices A M Khanwilkar and D Y Chandrachud, asked the CBI to respond to the affidavit filed by Mr. Karti in connection with his questioning by investigators before whom he appeared on August 23 and 28.
Additional Solicitor General Tushar Mehta told the Bench that there was “a good, cogent reason for the issuance of an LOC against him. It is not a simple case or that of one company but it involves jugglery of accounts and properties abroad“.
Appearing for Mr. Karti, senior advocate Gopal Subramanium submitted, “What is the subject matter of enquiry is not me but my father who happened to be the finance minister giving Foreign Investment Promotion Board (FIPB) approvals to a company in 2007 and it is alleged that one of the conditions had been violated“.
He added that not a single person of the six-member FIPB, who were secretary-level officers, was examined in the case.
