Randeep Singh Surjewala
On Thursday, Congress chief spokesperson Randeep Singh Surjewala held a press conference rubbishing the charges against former Union Minister P. Chidambaram. "The facts [of the INX Media case] do not support the claims," he said, speaking from the AICC headquarters. "The matter pertains to 2007. The arrest was made years later, in 2019, after the Modi government came to power. Chidambaram is one India's most respected economists and senior politicians. He was arrested on the statement of a jailed woman [Indrani Mukerjea], convicted for murdering her daughter. No chargesheet has yet been filed in the case. The case seems to rely on testimony of one woman [Indrani], who has turned approver. The arrest was made into a voyeuristic spectacle in the middle of the night, with an intent humiliate Chidambaram. The intent is clear: False charges are being ramped up against political rivals to shut everyone up."
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On Wednesday night, the CBI arrested former finance minister P. Chidambaram from his Jor Bagh residence in Delhi in the high-profile INX Media case. CBI had registered an FIR on May 15, 2017 alleging irregularities in the Foreign Investment Promotion Board (FIPB) clearance granted to the INX Media group for receiving overseas funds of Rs 305 crore in 2007 during Chidambaram's tenure as finance minister. Thereafter, the ED in 2018 lodged a "money laundering" case in this regard.
In a dramatic move, Chidambaram, who was facing arrest in cases of corruption and money laundering, appeared at the Congress headquarters on Wednesday evening—a few hours before his arrest—to declare his innocence and asked probe agencies to "respect" the law till the Supreme Court hears his bail plea on Friday.
Congress leaders Ghulam Nabi Azad, Ahmed Patel, Mallikarjun Kharge, Salman Khurshid and Vivek Tankha were beside Chidambaram at the party headquarters.
"I am aghast that I was accused of hiding from the law. On the contrary, I was seeking the protection of the law. I was aghast that I was accused of running away from justice. On the contrary, I was engaged in the pursuit of justice," Chidambaram said while rejecting allegations that he was evading investigating agencies.
"I believe that the foundation of a democracy is liberty, most precious article of the Constitution is Article 21 that guarantees life and liberty. If I'm asked to choose between life and liberty, I shall unhesitatingly choose liberty," he told reporters.
"To win freedom we must struggle. To preserve freedom too we must struggle," he said.
Reacting to Chidambaram's arrest, Congress chief spokesperson Randeep Surjewala said, "The shameless witch-hunt & unheard of abuse of CBI/ED by Modi Govt 2.0 is playing on every TV screen in India. It's a sham and shame that democracy stands dead in the hands of the BJP."
His son, Karti Chidambaram who is also accused of "wrongdoing" in the cases by probe agencies, termed the CBI/ED action as "political witch-hunt". He said he will protest against the move at Jantar Mantar.
Karti Chidambaram in Delhi: The protest in Jantar Mantar is about #Article370. Our whole party, alliance parties, the leader of DMK raised this issue (P Chidambaram's arrest) as well, Mr. MK Stalin condemned it yesterday. https://t.co/mkTlgE3OHF— ANI (@ANI) August 22, 2019
"This is a political witch-hunt. Outrageous media leaks are the preferred tactics of the @dir_ed. I have nothing to do with INX or the FIPB. All my assets and liabilities are duly declared in statutory and regulatory filings. I have repeated this ad nauseam," he tweeted.
"The drama and spectacle being enacted by the agencies is to simply sensationalise and satisfy the voyeuristic pleasure of some," Karti said in a series of tweets.
-Inputs from PTI
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