INX media case: CBI seeks additional time to address Karti's plea

The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) on Thursday sought more time to reply to the plea filed by former finance minister P. Chidambaram's son Karti Chidambaram, seeking permission to travel abroad in connection with the INX Media case.

The matter has been adjourned till November 20.

A lookout notice issued by the CBI on July 18 prevents Karti from travelling abroad without the investigating agency's permission.

The Supreme Court's three-judge bench has asked CBI to file its reply by today evening.

Karti is an accused in the alleged INX media case.

On November 9, the Apex Court had asked the CBI to respond whether Karti Chidambaram could be allowed to travel abroad for four to five days.

The apex court was hearing Karti's plea seeking permission to travel to the U.K.

The top court also asked the probe agency as to what conditions can be imposed on Karti so that he does not escape.

The apex court had earlier on November 6 rejected Karti's plea after the CBI opposed it, saying that he might tamper with the evidence, which is very crucial for the ongoing investigation, in the country.

It has been alleged that Karti illegally took service charges for getting the Foreign Investment Promotion Board (FIPB) clearance to the INX Media for receiving funds from abroad worth Rs. 305 crore in 2007, when his father P. Chidambaram was the finance minister in Congress-led UPA government.