Court asks CBI if Karti Chidambaram can leave India for few days

New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Thursday indicated that Karti Chidambaram, son of former finance minister P. Chidambaram, will be allowed to go abroad for four or five days pending investigation of the case registered against him.

A three-judge bench of chief justice Dipak Mishra and justices A.M. Kanwilkar and D.Y. Chandrachud – after perusing confidential material submitted by the CBI in a sealed cover in the probe being conducted against Karti – asked the investigating agency whether Karti could be allowed to go abroad for a few days.

The bench also asked CBI to explore whether Karti could be re-examined in the light of new material evidence produced in court. As the matter has been posted for further hearing in November, Karti cannot travel abroad as per his application, at least for the lecture from November 10 to 15. He has sought permission to visit the UK again between December 1 and 7.   

The bench was hearing Karti’s application seeking permission to visit the UK for a lecture on “rule of law and democratic developments in Pakistan”. On October 11, the court expressed an inclination to examine material submitted in a sealed cover by the CBI. On Thursday, the bench went through the material and asked additional solicitor general Tushar Mehta how long it would take CBI to complete the investigation. To this, the ASG said that no definite time frame could be given.