SC to hear CBI plea on lookout circular against Karti

New Delhi Jan 22 (IANS) The Supreme Court will hear on January 31 a CBI plea challenging the Madras High Court order staying a lookout circular against Karti Chidambaram son of former Finance Minister P. Chidambaram.

The Central Bureau of Investigation issued the lookout circular to bar Karti Chidambaram from travelling abroad as he is facing a probe in connection with alleged irregularities in the grant of FIPB clearance to INX Media Ltd. P. Chidambaram was then the Union Finance Minister.

The lookout circular has been issued against others also.

The Madras High Court had stayed the operation of the lookout circular on August 10 2017 and the same was put on hold by the top court on August 14 on an appeal by the CBI.

The bench of Chief Justice Dipak Misra Justice A.M. Khanwilkar and Justice D.Y. Chandrachud directed the hearing on the plea as senior counsel Kapil Sibal urged the court to finally hear the matter which is pending since August last year.

Stressing that there was no question of jurisdiction as far as the lookout circular was concerned Sibal told the bench that incapacitating Chidambaram junior from travelling abroad was adversely affecting him (Chidambaram).

The CBI has contended that the Madras High Court had no territorial jurisdiction to entertain the plea and stay the lookout circular.

Meanwhile the top court permitted Mohanan Rajesh a witness in the INX Media case to go to Scotland to visit his son who is studying there.

Rajesh is a Director of Advantage Strategic Consultant which the CBI says is owned by Karti Chidambaram.

Karti Chidambaram has denied any link with Advantage Strategic Consultant.

Permitting Rajesh to go abroad from January 27 to February 5 the court said that he "shall file an undertaking within three days hence indicating his flight details and that he would come back by February 5 2018".

"If the undertaking is not complied with the applicant respondent shall face such consequences as may be deemed fit and proper " it said.

--IANS
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