Karti Chidambaram visiting abroad not an issue requiring urgent hearing: SC

The Supreme Court on Thursday declined urgent hearing on a plea by senior Congress leader P Chidambaram's son Karti Chidambaram, who is facing several criminal cases, seeking its permission to go abroad.

A bench headed by Chief Justice of India Ranjan Gogoi said the issue of Karti Chidambaram visiting abroad is not an "important matter" requiring an urgent hearing.

The top court also observed that judges have more cases "than they can handle".

"Karti Chidambaram going abroad is not so important that it will get precedence over other (cases)," the bench, also comprising Justices U U Lalit and K M Joseph said.

The apex court had allowed Karti Chidambaram to travel to the UK between September 20 and September 30, despite the Enforcement Directorate's (ED) objection that he has been "blatantly misusing" the liberty granted to him by the court.

The ED had alleged that he has been "blatantly misusing" the liberty granted by the court in allowing him to travel abroad and has been using the same to protract the investigation in the case.

It had said the liberty granted to Karti Chidambaram by the apex court is "blatantly and brazenly hampering, subverting, jeopardising and protracting" the probe pending against him in the Aircel Maxis case, which the agency has to complete in six months.

The apex court had earlier allowed him to visit the UK, France and the US from July 23 to 31, while making it clear that he has to abide by the conditions imposed by it in an earlier similar order.

Karti Chidambaram has been facing several criminal cases including the grant of Foreign Investment Promotion Board (FIPB) clearance in the INX-Media case.

In the INX Media case, the CBI had registered an FIR on May 15 last year against alleged irregularities in the FIPB clearance to INX Media for receiving overseas funds to the tune of Rs 305 crore in 2007 when P Chidambaram was the Union finance minister.