JOIN USSix months after it provisionally attached assets, the adjudicating authority under Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) has confirmed the attachment of Rs 1.16 crore assets of Karti Chidambaram and a company "linked" to him in Aircel-Maxis case.
In a tweet, the Enforcement Directorate (ED) said, "adjudicating Authority PMLA confirms attachment of assets worth Rs 1.16 crore of Karti P Chidambaram and Advantage Strategic Consulting Pvt Ltd in Aircel Maxis case."
The decision comes as a setback to Karti, son of former Finance Minister P Chidambaram who was arrested by CBI last month in connection with INX Media case, as the ED contemplates arresting him in the case and moved Supreme Court challenging relief given to him.
The provisional attachment had come on September 25 last year. Karti and Chidambaram had denied any wrongdoing. "The allegations against Karti are a crazy mixture of falsehoods and conjecture. The ED intends to intimidate me and to silence my voice. I will not be intimidated. As and when the attachment order is served, suitable action will be taken in accordance with law," Chidambaram had then claimed.
Karti's assets attached are in the form of fixed deposits and balance in saving bank account of around Rs 90 lakh. It also attached Rs 26 lakh fixed deposits in the name of ASCPL. The ED had claimed that ASCPL was "controlled" by Karti through another person.
The ED had then claimed that Karti had "disposed" of a property in Haryana's Gurgaon, which is near Delhi. They also accused him of "closing certain bank accounts and attempted to close other bank accounts in order to frustrate the process of attachment" under the PMLA.
The agency had recently raided Chidambaram's residence recently as it is investigating the "aspect of irregularity" in the grant of approval by FIPB in Aircel-Maxis case when he was the finance minister.