CBI officer probing Aircel-Maxis case allegedly involving P Chidambaram gets extension

A CBI officer probing the Aircel-Maxis case allegedly involving former finance minister P Chidambaram and his son Karti Chidambaram was today given a two-year extension by the central government, according to an official order.

The central government has approved extension in deputation tenure of Vineet Vinayak and Bhanu Bhaskar, both working as Joint Directors in the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), it said.

Vinayak, a 1995-batch IPS officer of Sikkim cadre, will have extended tenure till September 9, 2020, the order issued by the Personnel Ministry said.

He is looking into the Aircel-Maxis case and also the in-charge of probe in the case of data breach by the UK-based firm Cambridge Analytica (CA).

P Chidambaram and his son were named in the charge sheet filed by the CBI in the Aircel-Maxis case on July 19.

The CBI is probing as to how P Chidambaram, who was the finance minister in 2006, granted a Foreign Investment Promotion Board (FIPB) approval to a foreign firm, when only the Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA) was empowered to do so.

The senior Congress leader's role has come under the scanner of investigating agencies in the Rs 3,500-crore Aircel-Maxis deal and the INX Media case involving Rs 305 crore.

The Enforcement Directorate (ED) is also probing a separate money-laundering case in the Aircel-Maxis matter, in which P Chidambaram and Karti Chidambaram have been questioned by the agency.

The Chidambarams have denied the allegations levelled against them by the CBI and the ED.

The CBI has initiated a preliminary enquiry against Cambridge Analytica for alleged illegal personal data harvesting of Indians from social media giant Facebook.

Vinayak is the joint director in Economic Offences wing of the federal probe agency.

Besides him, Bhaskar has also got extension till August 5, 2020.

He is posted in the national capital and in-charge of Patna zone in the agency.

Bhaskar's team is investigating alleged mental, physical and sexual exploitation of minor girls at a Bihar government-funded shelter home in Muzaffarpur.

He is a 1996-batch IPS officer of Uttar Pradesh cadre.