Officials did nothing wrong in INX clearances: Chidambaram

New Delhi: Senior Congress leader P. Chidambaram on Monday urged the authorities concerned not to arrest officers who were involved in giving clearances to the INX Media when he was Union finance minister, saying “none of them had done anything wrong”. Mr Chidambaram is in judicial custody in connection with the INX media case and is languishing in Tihar central prison.

Mr Chidambaram, who was sent to judicial custody last week, asked his family to post a message from him on Twitter. He said people asked him why only he had been arrested, but he had no answer. “I have requested my family to tweet on my behalf the following:- People have asked me ‘If the dozen officers who processed and recommended the case to you have not been arrested, why have you been arrested? Only because you have put the last signature?’” the tweet from Mr Chidambaram’s official Twitter handle said. “I have no answer,” he said.

“No officer has done anything wrong. I do not want anyone to be arrested,” Mr Chidambaram said in another tweet. Mr Chidambaram was put behind bars on last Thursday, hours after a CBI court sent him to two-week judicial custody in the INX Media case. The CBI registered an FIR on May 15, 2017, alleging irregularities in the Foreign Investment Promotion Board (FIPB) clearance granted to the INX group for receiving overseas funds of '305 crore in 2007 during Mr Chidambaram’s tenure as finance minister. After that, ED lodged a money laundering case in this regard in 2017. INX Media sought the FIPB clearances on March 13, 2007, for permission to issue, by way of preferential allotment, up to 14.98 equity shares to three non-resident entities.