INX media case: P Chidambaram wants questioning transcript

New Delhi: Senior Congress leader P. Chidambaram on Tuesday told the Supreme Court he was not expected to give answers to questions by the Enforcement Directorate in the INX Media corruption and money-laundering case that the investigative agency wanted to hear and which would boost its case.

Rebutting allegations of being “evasive” in the course of his questioning on three days, Mr Chidambaram sought a transcript of his questioning by the ED on December 19, 2018, January 1 and January 21, 2019, asserting it would prove that he had replied to every question posed to him.

He told the court that in the course of questioning, he was asked if he had any overseas bank account and he had said no. He was asked if his son had an account in a foreign bank, to which he said yes, but that was opened after due permission from the RBI.

The court on Tuesday extended by another day till August 28 interim protection to Mr Chidambaram from arrest by the Enforcement Directorate.

Moving an application seeking a direction to the ED to produce transcripts of Mr Chidambaram’s questioning on three occasions, senior counsel Kapil Sibal told the bench of Justices R. Banumathi and A.S. Bopanna that the documents now sought to be handed over to the court can’t be a part of the case diary and this can’t be looked into.

The court asked solicitor-general Tushar Mehta to respond to the plea.