P Chidambaram

The Delhi High Court on Wednesday stayed the trial court proceedings against senior Congress leader P Chidambaram in the Aircel-Maxis case lodged by the Enforcement Directorate. The high court also issued notice to the Enforcement Directorate (ED) and sought its response on Chidambaram's petition challenging the trial court's order taking cognisance of the chargesheet filed by the agency against him and his son Karti in the money laundering case. "Notice issued. Till the next date of hearing, the proceedings against the petitioner shall remain stayed. List on January 22," Justice Manoj Kumar Ohri said, adding that he will pass a detailed order later. Senior advocate N Hariharan and lawyers Arshdeep Singh Khurana and Akshat Gupta, representing Chidambaram, contended that the special judge took cognisance of the chargesheet for the alleged offence of money laundering in the absence of any sanction for prosecution of the former Union minister who was a public servant when the offence w

The former Union Minister also took a dig at Prime Minister Narendra Modi, saying that it would be statesmanship if PM Modi visited Manipur and addressed their problems

The Delhi High Court on Monday sought the stand of the CBI on pleas by former Union minister P Chidambaram and his son Karti Chidambaram seeking to defer arguments on framing of charges in the INX media case. Justice Manoj Kumar Ohri issued notice to the investigating agency on the petitions and said "let response be filed". The senior counsel appearing for the two Congress leaders argued that the arguments on framing of charges ought not to commence before the trial court as the investigation was still pending. CBI's counsel said there was sufficient material to show "demand of bribe" and framing of charges should not be stopped on account of any pending investigation. The CBI had registered its case on May 15, 2017, alleging irregularities in a Foreign Investment Promotion Board (FIPB) clearance granted to the INX Media group for receiving overseas funds of Rs 305 crore in 2007 during P Chidambaram's tenure as finance minister. In the pleas before the high court, Chidambaram and

He urged the people to think carefully before voting for their government

A day after Jammu and Kashmir LG Manoj Sinha held a security review meeting, senior Congress leader P Chidambaram on Thursday said people have elected a chief minister and government to look after their security but the CM has no authority. Chidambaram also asserted that the immediate restoration of full statehood to J-K is imperative. In a post on X, the former home minister said the photograph of the LG of Jammu and Kashmir presiding over a meeting to review the law and order situation in J-K is telling. "The elected chief minister is not present. Whether he was invited or not, I do not know. Under the law applicable to J&K, police and public order are subjects reserved for the LG," Chidambaram said. The people have elected a chief minister and government to look after their security, among other things, but the chief minister has no authority, he said. This is why J-K is described as half a state, Chidambaram added. The immediate restoration of full statehood to J-K is ...

Senior Congress leader P Chidambaram on Monday asserted that the Haryana Congress was not a divided house and would fight the October 5 state assembly elections unitedly. Addressing the media here, the former union minister lashed out at the BJP government over several issues including agriculture, economy, and state debt. He also said that the Congress will come out with its poll manifesto this week. Polling for the 90 assembly seats in Haryana will be held on October 5 and votes will be counted on October 8. On reports of infighting in the Haryana Congress, Chidambaram said, "I do not think Haryana PPCC is a divided house. There are leaders of high stature. Naturally, the leaders will ask for greater influence in the selection of candidates but once the candidates have been selected, I am sure that all of them will campaign together and win the election. "There is no dissidence in the Congress party. There are several leaders in a state unit and we respect all of them. Naturally

Congress leader P Chidambaram on Monday lashed out at the BJP-led NDA government at the Centre over the 'one nation, one election' issue, saying it is not possible under the present Constitution and requires at least five constitutional amendments. Replying to a question on reports that the BJP-led NDA government would implement 'one nation, one election' within its current tenure, he said Prime Minister Narendra Modi does not have the numbers to place those constitutional amendments either in the Lok Sabha or Rajya Sabha. In his Independence Day address last month, the prime minister made a strong pitch for 'one nation, one election', contending that frequent polls were creating hurdles in the country's progress. Addressing reporters here, Chidambaram said, "'One nation, one election' is not possible under the present Constitution. It requires at least five constitutional amendments." "Mr Modi does not have the majority to put those constitutional amendments in either in the Lok .

Senior Congress leader P Chidambaram on Thursday said the Jan Dhan Yojana was a UPA-era scheme that was "renamed" by the Modi government, and asserted that several million accounts were opened between 2005 and 2014. The former finance minister's remarks came a day after the government marked completion of 10 years of the Pradhan Mantri Jan Dhan Yojana with Prime Minister Narendra Modi hailing the scheme. Chidambaram said the RBI governor who conceived of the idea was C Rangarajan. In 2005, when the 'No Frills Account' or 'Zero Balance Account' was rolled out, the governor was Dr Y V Reddy, he said. "Dr Reddy was succeeded by Dr Subba Rao. All the past governors deserve credit for introducing the scheme. It was renamed as Basic Savings Bank Deposit Account (BSBDA) in 2012," he said in a statement. The UPA-era scheme was renamed as Jan Dhan Yojana by the Modi government, Chidambaram said. Several million accounts were opened between 2005 and 2014, he said. As the Pradhan Mantri Ja

During the Budget discussion in Rajya Sabha, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman slammed the Opposition for attempting to "politicise" Agniveer scheme

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Emphasising that this is too large a country with too many candidates writing the examination, he said that the government needs to give up this all-India examination

Congress leader P Chidambaram on Tuesday welcomed the Tamil Nadu government's decision to appoint a committee to suggest state-specific amendments to the three new criminal laws and asserted that criminal law is a concurrent list subject which makes the state legislature competent to make amendments. He also stressed that criminal laws that are in consonance with modern principles of criminal jurisprudence must be enacted. "I welcome the decision of the government of Tamil Nadu to appoint a Committee to suggest state amendments to the three criminal laws that came into force on 1 July 2024," the former home minister said in a post on X. Criminal Law is a subject in the concurrent list of the Constitution and the state legislature is competent to make amendments, Chidambaram said. "I also welcome the appointment of Justice (retd) Mr K.Sathyanarayanan as the one-person Committee. I request the Committee to hold consultations with all stakeholders including judges, lawyers, police, la

Rajya Sabha MP Kapil Sibal on Sunday hit out at Vice President Jagdeep Dhankhar over his criticism of Congress leader P Chidambaram's remarks on the new criminal laws, and said it was not the opposition that insults parliamentary procedures on a daily basis. Sibal's remarks came a day after Dhankhar lashed out at Chidambaram over his comment that the three new criminal laws were "drafted by part-timers", terming it as "inexcusable" and urging him to withdraw his "derogatory, defamatory and insulting" observation. Dhankhar had said he was "shocked beyond words" when he read Chidambaram's interview to a leading national daily wherein he had said that "the new laws were drafted by part-timers". In a post on X, Sibal said Sunday, "Dhankar: Criticised Chidambaram's statement that part-timers drafted the three criminal laws was an 'inexcusable insult to the wisdom of Parliament'. We are all part-timers Dhankar ji!" "And who insults parliamentary procedures on a daily basis? Not us!" said

With the three new criminal laws coming into effect, senior Congress leader P Chidambaram on Monday slammed the government and said it was another case of "bulldozing" existing laws and replacing them with three new bills without adequate discussion and debate. The former home minister said that in the long term, further changes must be made to the three laws to bring them in conformity with the Constitution and the modern principles of criminal jurisprudence. The Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita and the Bharatiya Sakshya Adhiniyam replaced the British-era Indian Penal Code, Code of Criminal Procedure and the Indian Evidence Act, respectively. In a post on X, Chidambaram said, "90-99 per cent of the so-called new laws are a cut, copy and paste job. A task that could have been completed with a few amendments to the existing three laws has been turned into a wasteful exercise." "Yes, there are a few improvements in the new laws and we have welcomed them. Th

Congress leader P Chidambaram said Tuesday the people of the country have voted for the 18th Lok Sabha in such a manner that no "divine ruler" can change the basic structure of the Constitution. In a post on 'X', he said the people have voted to curtail the ambitions of the BJP. "Hon'ble Prime Minister said that 'Emergency reminds us to protect the Constitution'. Very true," Chidambaram said. "I may add, the Constitution reminded the people to prevent another Emergency, and they voted to curtail the ambitions of the BJP. The people voted for the 18th Lok Sabha in such a manner that no human or divine ruler can change the basic structure of the Constitution," he added. "India will remain a liberal, democratic and secular Union of States," the Congress leader added. Prime Minister Narendra Modi said Tuesday those who imposed the Emergency have no right to profess love for the Constitution. On the 49th anniversary of the 1975 Emergency, the prime minister said its dark days are a ..

Senior Congress leader P Chidambaram on Sunday alleged the BJP and AIADMK are fighting the July 10 Vikravandi bypoll through 'proxy' PMK and that the INDIA bloc must ensure a resounding victory of the DMK candidate. Hitting out at Tamil Nadu's main opposition AIADMK for boycotting the bypoll, Chidambaram, in a post on X, said: "AIADMK's decision to boycott the Vikravandi by-election is clear evidence that it has received instructions from the 'top' to facilitate the electoral chances of the NDA candidate (PMK). Both BJP and AIADMK are fighting the battle through a proxy (PMK). The I.N.D.I.A. bloc must ensure the resounding victory of the DMK candidate." Tamil Nadu's principal opposition party, AIADMK, on June 15 announced a boycott of the bypoll to the Vikravandi Assembly constituency, alleging the ruling DMK will unleash 'violence' and not allow people to vote 'independently.' Pattali Makkal Katchi, a constituent of the BJP-led NDA in Tamil Nadu announced on Saturday that the party'

A Delhi court on Thursday granted bail to Congress leader Karti Chidambaram in a money laundering case linked to the alleged Chinese visa scam. Special Judge for ED and CBI, Kaveri Baweja, granted the relief to the accused after he appeared before the court in pursuance to summons issued against him. The court had issued summons against the accused while taking cognisance of a charge sheet filed by the ED in the case. The judge granted the relief on a personal bond of Rs one lakh and one surety of like amount. The ED has registered the money laundering case against Karti Chidambaram in the alleged scam pertaining to the issuance of visa to 263 Chinese nationals in 2011 when his father P Chidambaram was the Union home minister.

Senior Congress leader P Chidambaram on Thursday said the Election Commission was "egregiously wrong" in directing his party not to 'politicise' the Agnipath scheme, asserting that it is the right of an Opposition party to criticise a policy of the government. The Election Commission Wednesday came down heavily on the ruling BJP and opposition Congress, asking them to desist from campaigning along caste, community, language, and religious lines. The EC also asked the Congress not to politicise defence forces and make potentially divisive statements regarding the socio-economic composition of the armed forces. The Commission was referring to remarks made by top Congress leaders on the Agnipath scheme. In a post on X, Chidambaram said the ECI is wrong in directing the Congress party not to 'politicise' the Agnipath scheme. "What does 'politicize' mean? Does the ECI mean 'criticise'? Agniveer is a scheme, a product of the policy of the government. It is the right of an Opposition ...

Other Congress leaders like P Chidambaram and Sachin Pilot also paid their respects to the former prime minister in the national capital