Mumbai: A special Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) court conducting trial in the Sheena Bora murder case on Thursday granted permission to the Enforcement Dire-ctorate (ED) to interrogate former owner of INX Media Group Indrani Mukerjea in connection with a money laundering case allegedly involving former Union finance minister P. Chidambaram's son Karti.
The case is registered in Delhi and the court in Mumbai has allowed ED officials to interrogate Indrani on November 24 and December 6, at Byculla jail in Mumbai, where she is lodged currently.
Earlier in May, a first information report (FIR) was lodged against Mr Chidambaram's son Karti, Indrani and Peter Mukerjea, unknown officers of the Foreign Investment Promotion Board (FIPB) unit of ministry of finance and others over alleged financial misappropriation over FIPB clearance to Peter Mukerjea and Indrani's media company INX Media in 2008.
The complaint includes charges like criminal conspiracy, cheating, taking gratification in order by corrupt or illegal means to influence public servants and criminal misconduct.
CBI judge J.C. Jagdale in his order said, “It will not be proper to reject the ED application and it is allowed.”
The ED, in its application made through advocate Hiten Venegaonkar, said that INX Media approached the chairman of FIPB, department of economic affairs in 2007. It sought approval for permission to issue by the way of preferential allotment in one or more tranches up to 14,98,995 equity shares of Rs 10 each and up to 31,22,605 convertible non-cumulative redeemable preference shares of Rs 10 each, collectively representing approximately 46.216 per cent of the issued equity share capital of INX Media on an "as converted" basis to three non-resident investors under the FDI route.
The ED in its application said INX Media deliberately concealed the fact that it had already received the investment in the company to the extent of 26 per cent including FDI, in pursuance to criminal conspiracy, again approached the FIPB unit of ministry of finance on their suggestion and sought permission for the downstream investment. "Such deceitful and fallacious proposal was favourably considered by officials of ministry of finance and approved by the then finance minister," the ED said.
According to the agency, INX Media sought this approval for engaging in the business of creating, operating, managing and broadcasting of a bouquet of television channels including Hindi entertainment channels and multiple vernacular entertainment channels.
The ED has claimed that, "It is revealed that Peter and his wife Indrani have allegedly siphoned off GBP 90 million and this money is suspected to have gone to overseas countries through unauthorised route of hawala etc."
The ED also said Sheena's murder was suspected to have been motivated by financial reasons and is under trial. After going through the detailed application of the ED the judge allowed it to examine Indrani in jail.
