Former union minister P Chidambaram has been granted bail by the Supreme Court of India (SC) in the INX Media case registered by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI).
Chidambaram is currently in the Enforcement Directorate (ED)’s custody till October 24 in relation to the same case.
Reports suggest that the bail was granted on personal bond of Rs 1 lakh and that he has to make himself available for interrogation.
Chidambaram was arrested in connection with the graft case on August 21 by the CBI, which has recently chargesheeted him and others, including his son Karti and some bureaucrats, for causing loss to the exchequer by allegedly committing offences under the Prevention of Corruption Act and the Indian Penal Code (IPC).
The CBI had registered an FIR on May 15, 2017 alleging irregularities in a Foreign Investment Promotion Board (FIPB) clearance granted to INX Media group for receiving overseas funds of Rs 305 crore in 2007, during Chidambaram’s tenure as the finance minister.
Thereafter, the ED lodged a money laundering case in this regard in 2017.
The 74-year-old senior Congress leader approached the apex court challenging the September 30 verdict of the High Court which had dismissed his bail plea in the INX Media case, filed by the CBI, saying the probe was at an advanced stage and the possibility of his influencing the witnesses cannot be ruled out.