Congress cries murder of democracy in Chidambaram case

Congress on Thursday hit out at the Modi government accusing it of turning the CBI into a “personal revenge-seeking department”, a day after former Finance Minister P Chidambaram was arrested in the INX media case.

The main opposition party also expressed displeasure over the delay in Chidambaram getting an urgent hearing in the Supreme Court, which had listed his plea seeking protection from arrest for Friday.

“Can a small technicality of a registry withhold the hearing. Can court refuse to hear cases on basis of technicality,” Randeep Singh Surjewala, in-charge of the AICC Communication Department told a press conference here.

Surjewala also said that over the last two days, India witnessed “murder of democracy in broad daylight”.

“The case has been lodged nine years later. He has been arrested 11 years later. This is being done by the CBI, which is has been turned by the rulers as a personal revenge-seeking department,” Surjewala said

Congress leader also said the case against Chidambaram relied solely on the testimony of a woman charged with the murder of her own daughter, a reference to Indrani Mukherjee, the founder of INX Media, who has now turned approver in the case.

“A seasoned politician was arrested on the statement of a woman charged with murder of her own daughter,” Surjewala said.

Surjewala termed the arrest of Chidambaram as “vindictive, selective and malicious” which was “nothing short of a brazen personal and political vendetta”.

“There is no offence disclosed against P Chidambaram in the FIR, nor a chargesheet has been filed till today… matter pertains to 2007 and the arrest has only been made 12 years later, six years after PM Modi came to power,” he said.

He said the sudden arrest of Chidambaram was also a plot to divert the attention from a sinking economy and increased job losses.

“Except for the blatant intent of the BJP Government to humiliate and tarnish the reputation of P Chidambaram, there was no occasion or hurry or reason to arrest him,” Surjewala said citing the former Finance Minister's four-decade career in public life.