The Enforcement Directorate (ED) yesterday questioned former finance minister P Chidambaram for “over five hours” here in the Rs35bn Aircel-Maxis deal.
Chidambaram appeared at the ED’s office around 11am – within an hour after a Delhi court extended the interim protection to him from arrest till July 10 in connection with the case after directing him to join the probe whenever required.
According to ED sources, Chidambaram was questioned till 1.30pm when he was given a break and was allowed to step out of the ED office to have lunch. The questioning resumed at 3pm and continued till around 6pm.
It was the first time that the the senior Congress leader joined the probe in the case. The ED had issued a fresh summons to him on Monday to appear before the investigating officer of the case. The agency recorded his statement under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA).
The questioning is part of ED’s investigation in a money laundering case registered in 2017 against Chidambaram’s son Karti Chidambaram in the Aircel-Maxis case.
Earlier, the court had allowed interim protection to Karti Chidambaram till July 10.
The Central Bureau of Investigation and the ED are examining how Karti Chidambaram allegedly managed to get a clearance from the Foreign Investment Promotion Board (FIPB) in the Aircel-Maxis deal when his father was the finance minister in 2006.
The ED, in September 2017, had seized Rs11.6mn worth of assets of Karti Chidambaram, who is being probed for allegedly receiving kickbacks in lieu of the FIPB clearance.
The former minister later said: “There is no FIR, no offence alleged, yet an investigation”.
“Appeared before the ED. The questions were about what is already recorded in the file. Hence, answers too were what is recorded in the file,” tweeted Chidambaram.
“More than half the time taken up by typing the answers without errors, reading the statement and signing it,” he added.
Chidambaram said: “Need to reiterate that there is no FIR, no offence alleged, yet there is an investigation.”