Delhi High Court stays proceedings against PC in Maxis case | India News – Times of India

NEW DELHI: The Delhi High Court on Wednesday stayed proceedings against former Union minister P. Chidambaram’s alleged involvement in the Aircel Maxis money laundering case. The single-judge bench of Justice Manoj Kumar Ohri was acting on a plea filed by him against the court’s decision to take cognizance of the charge sheet filed by the ED in the case against him.
“In the present case, the fact that the petitioner is a public servant and the fact that he committed an offense while he was a public servant is not in dispute, the challenge to the legality of the order to take cognizance and the continuation of the proceedings for defect to sanction in the light of the allegations made in the prosecution’s complaint(s), would require further consideration. At this stage, taking into account the import of the said decision, it is considered appropriate to proceed with the proceedings before the court in respect of. the present petitioner will remain until the next date of hearing to be determined,” it said. tnn
The Supreme Court has also issued notice to ED seeking a response from the agency on Chidambaram’s petition. The next hearing in the case is scheduled for November 22. Chidambaram has filed a petition in HC challenging the court’s decision to admit the case. ED complaint against him and his son, Karti Chidambaram, in the Aircel-Maxis case. Senior advocate N Hariharan, who represented the ex-minister, argued that the cognizance could not be taken without prosecution.
Hariharan said that in the absence of sanctions, the continuation of proceedings in court is illegal. He submitted that the Supreme Court has reiterated that in case of a public servant, obtaining prior sanction under Section 197(1) CrPC is mandatory and thus, taking cognizance by the court is contrary to settled legal position.
Referring to a judgment of the SC, he further submitted that the issue of sanction which is crucial for the continuation of the trial can be raised at any stage. Lawyer Zoheb Hossain represented ED.
The case pertains to alleged irregularities in the Foreign Investment Promotion Board (FIPB) approvals given to the Aircel-Maxis deal when Chidambaram was the Union finance minister. In 2006, Maxis acquired Aircel by acquiring a 74% stake. The deal came under the scanner in 2011 after Aircel owner C Sivasankaran filed a complaint with the CBI, alleging that he was being pressured to sell his stake to Maxis.
In July 2018, the CBI named P. Chidambaram and his son as accused in its supplementary chargesheet. CBI and ED alleged that Chidambaram, as finance minister, approved the deal from which certain people benefited and received kickbacks.
A total of 18 people were named in the charge sheet, including Chidambaram, his son, former financial secretaries Ashok Chawla, former Aircel CEO V Srinivasan and Maxis owners T Ananda Krishnan and Augustus Ralph Marshall.