CBI searches Peter Mukerjea, Karti’s homes

Mumbai: The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI)’s Delhi team on Tuesday searched former media baron Peter Mukerjea’s Mumbai residence, on a day its officials also conducted searches in Chennai at the residences of former Union finance minister P. Chidambaram and his son Karti in an alleged corruption probe.   

The searches were related to a case registered by the CBI to probe alleged favours granted to Peter and his wife Indrani Mukerjea’s INX Media and INX News in getting clearances for foreign direct investment (FDI) when Chidambaram was the finance minister in 2007. The agency registered a case in Delhi on Monday under charges related to criminal conspiracy, cheating of the IPC and under sections of the Prevention of Corruption Act, 1988 against the Mukerjeas, Karti and unknown officers/officials of finance ministry along with other unknown persons have been named in the case. The case pertains to the alleged irregularities in issuance of clearance by the Foreign Investment Promotion Board (FIPB) in 2007. “The said media companies were favoured through unauthorised downstream investment in said news company without the approval of FIPB, ignoring the receipt of excess foreign direct investment by the media company than the amount approved by the FIPB unit of the ministry of finance. This in turn prevented any punitive action being taken against the said media group. It was also alleged that the unknown officials of the ministry of finance by abusing their official position, caused undue pecuniary advantage to said two Mumbai-based media firms. It was further alleged that as a consideration for such act, the media group paid money to the companies wherein the director of management services based at Chennai had sustainable interest directly or indirectly,” said a CBI officer.

The CBI alleged Karti used his connections to tweak the rules and get a clearance for getting foreign funds for INX Media. The CBI alleged that Karti had received kickbacks indirectly — a firm allegedly controlled by him raised invoices worth Rs 10 lakh on INX for consultancy services to wriggle out of a finance ministry inquiry into the irregularities committed by it. The raids were conducted by a five-member team of economic offences wing (EOW) of the CBI, in the backdrop of the files and seizures conducted in 2015 following the Sheena Bora murder case coming to the fore. Peter and Indrani are in Mumbai jails after getting chargesheeted in the April 2012 Sheena murder case.

“Two places including Mukherjea’s residence in Worli’s Marlow Apartment and then INX office in Powai were searched. We have seized some case related documents from the residence, which will help in the probe,” said a CBI officer.

The CBI that investigated the Sheena murder case had seized several documents pertaining to the money trail and these papers will also be handed over to the EOW team of CBI for thorough investigation in the money trail.

The CBI team conducted searches at the two locations early on Tuesday and the team left from Peter’s residence around 4:30 pm.  

Despite several attempts, The Asian Age could not reach Karti Chidambaram. However, his personal secretary Murali Venugopal said, “Karti Chidambaram has switched off all his phones and he is not taking any calls. He has left from his office and would not be able to give any reaction today.”

Chidambaram meanwhile said the government was using the CBI and other agencies to target his son. FIPB approval was granted in “hundreds of cases,” he said.