Congress chief Karti Chidambaram. File | , Photograph Credit score: The Hindu
The Appellate Tribunal beneath the Prevention of Cash Laundering Act (PMLA) has dismissed the enchantment filed by Karti P. Chidambaram, upholding the Enforcement Directorate’s (ED) attachment of his property and ruling that the delay in submitting the prosecution criticism was protected by the Supreme Court docket’s Covid-19 limitation orders.
The Enforcement Directorate (ED) on in 2023 connected properties to the tune of ₹11.04 crore belonging to Congress MP Karti Chidambaram within the INX cash laundering case, an official assertion stated.
The ED stated that out of 4 connected properties, one is an immovable asset positioned in Coorg district of Karnataka.
A provisional order beneath the Prevention of Cash Laundering Act (PMLA) has been issued towards Mr. Karti, the assertion stated.
Karti Chidambaram, son of former Union Minister and senior Congress chief P. Chidambaram, is a sitting MP from the Sivaganga Lok Sabha seat in Tamil Nadu and was arrested within the INX case each by the CBI in addition to the ED.
Delivering its ultimate order on October 29, the Tribunal comprising Member (Judicial) Rajesh Malhotra and Member (Administrative) Balesh Kumar said that though the prosecution criticism was filed on June 1, 2020, greater than 12 months after the Adjudicating Authority’s affirmation order dated March 29, 2019, the interval between March 15, 2020 and February 28, 2022 stood excluded for all judicial and quasi-judicial proceedings owing to pandemic-related restrictions.
The enchantment was argued on behalf of Karti P. Chidambaram by Advocates Arshdeep Khurana, Akshat Gupta, and Sidak Singh Anand, who contended that the attachment had lapsed routinely because the ED did not file its criticism throughout the prescribed 365-day interval.
They relied on earlier Tribunal choices and the Supreme Court docket’s ruling in S. Kasi v. State to say that the COVID limitation orders utilized solely to litigants and to not govt actions just like the submitting of prosecution complaints.
Showing for the Enforcement Directorate, Advocates Zoheb Hossain, Vivek Gurnani, and Kanishk Maurya countered the argument, emphasizing that the lockdown had severely restricted the motion and functioning of courts.
They maintained that the ED’s motion was protected beneath the Supreme Court docket’s suo motu order extending the limitation throughout the pandemic.
Upholding the ED’s place, the Tribunal noticed, “The protection of the Supreme Court docket’s order dated 10.01.2022 was broad sufficient to permit the submitting of the prosecution criticism beneath PMLA past 12 months of the passing of the impugned order, so long as such interval fell throughout the prolonged interval of limitation from March 15 2020, to February 28, 2022.
“The Tribunal dismissed the enchantment and held that the provisional attachment of Karti Chidambaram’s property, together with his 50% share within the Jor Bagh property in New Delhi valued at ₹16.05 crore and a number of financial institution accounts with Indian Abroad Financial institution in Chennai, would proceed.
Nevertheless, the Tribunal granted some aid in as far as the possession of the property is anxious. It had, in its earlier order, protected the possession of the property by granting established order. Whereas noting this interim safety would stop with the disposal of the enchantment, the Tribunal clarified that such possession “can henceforth be taken provided that distinctive causes exist,” referring to the Supreme Court docket’s ruling in Vijay Madanlal Choudhary & Ors. v. Union of India (2022).
(With inputs from ANI)
Revealed – October 31, 2025 05:02 pm IST