P Chidambaram: Supreme Court alters order, plea challenging remand to CBI custody to be heard tomorrow

Shortly after the Supreme Court passed an order extending the police custody of P Chidambaram in the INX Media case registered by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), the order was altered by the Bench of Justices R Banumathi and AS Bopanna.

In the pre-lunch hearing, the Supreme Court had ordered for the trial court to hear the plea of interim bail today itself. The Court went on to say that should the plea be rejected, status quo as of today shall be maintained till Thursday.

When the Court assembled post recess, Solicitor General of India Tushar Mehta, who was absent during the pre-lunch hearing, urged the Court to hold the hearing in the case tomorrow. He assured the Court that the CBI would seek an extension of police custody of P Chidambaram for another day.

Mehta also submitted that police custody in excess of 15 days is judicially unsustainable, which is why he urged for the hearing to be held tomorrow when the period of 15 days will have been completed.

The Court acceeded to the request posted the case for hearing at 2 PM tomorrow. The order reads:

“On being mentioned at 03:00 P.M., we have heard Mr. Tushar Mehta, learned Solicitor General appearing for the respondentC.B.I. Mr. Tushar Mehta, learned Solicitor General, has submitted that the fifteen days of remand of the petitioner expires tomorrow i.e. 03.09.2019 and therefore there may be jurisdictional difficulties in implementing the orders of this Court passed in the forenoon session and requests that the matter be listed tomorrow.

In view of above, list the matter tomorrow i.e. 03.09.2019 at 02:00 p.m. The respondent-C.B.I. is at liberty to move the C.B.I. Court to seek police custody of the petitioner till tomorrow.”

The hearing in the Rouse Avenue Court in the same case is scheduled to be held today.

Chidambaram was arrested by the CBI in connection with the INX Media case on August 21, a day after the Delhi High Court denied his anticipatory bail plea. Both the CBI and the Enforcement Directorate (ED) had sought his arrest in the case.

On August 29, the Supreme Court reserved its order in the plea filed by former Union Minister and Senior Advocate P Chidambaram for anticipatory bail in the case registered by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) in the INX Media case.

[Read Order]