INX Media case: Delhi court grants bail to ex-NITI Aayog CEO, others

A Delhi court Wednesday granted bail to former NITI Aayog CEO Sindhushree Khullar and others in the INX Media corruption case which also involves former finance minister P Chidambaram and his son Karti as accused.

Chidabmarams are already on bail in the case.

Special Judge Ajay Kumar Kuhar also granted bail to former Officer on Special Duty (OSD) to finance minister Pradeep Kumar Bagga and former FIPB director Prabodh Saxena.

Former section officer of the FIPB unit in the Finance Ministry, Ajeet Kumar Dungdung; the then under secretary in the FIPB unit, Rabindra Prasad and former joint secretary (Foreign Trade) DEA Anup K Pujari were also granted the relief by the court.

The judge, who granted them bail on a surety of Rs 2 lakh each, directed that the accused would not leave the country without its permission.

It further directed them not to tamper with the evidence or hamper the probe.

The CBI had opposed their applications, saying they may tamper with evidence and flee from justice if granted the relief.

While seeking bail for the accused persons, senior advocate Siddharth Luthra and advocate Vikash Kumar Pathak, had said that the CBI did not arrest the accused persons while probing the matter.

"Now while the probe is already complete and the final report filed, there is no ground to take them in custody since there is no ground to suggest that they tried to hamper the probe," they said.

On Tuesday, the court directed the CBI to hand over to Chidambarams certain documents filed along with the charge sheet in the case.

The judge issued the direction to the CBI during the hearing in the corruption case after the father-son duo told the court that they had not received various documents filed along with the charge sheet.

P Chidambaram was taken into custody on August 21, last year when he was arrested by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) in INX Media corruption case.

On October 16, the ED arrested him in the separate money-laundering case.

Six days later, on October 22, the apex court had granted him bail in the case lodged by the CBI.

On December 4, after 105 days of custody, Chidambaram was granted bail by the Supreme Court in the money laundering case lodged by the ED.

CBI had registered its case on May 15, 2017, alleging irregularities in a Foreign Investment Promotion Board clearance granted to INX Media group for receiving overseas funds of Rs 305 crore in 2007 during Chidambaram's tenure as finance minister.

Thereafter, ED had lodged the money laundering case.