Aircel-Maxis case: ED will get prosecution sanction in opposition to Chidambaram | India Information
2 min learnNew DelhiUp to date: Feb 27, 2026 01:42 AM IST
THE ENFORCEMENT Directorate (ED) has obtained prosecution sanction to proceed in opposition to former Union Finance Minister P Chidambaram within the Aircel-Maxis cash laundering case, paving the way in which for the trial to renew earlier than the particular courtroom beneath the Prevention of Cash Laundering Act (PMLA).
In response to the company, the sanction was granted by the competent authority on February 10 in compliance with the current Supreme Courtroom judgment that made prosecution sanction obligatory beneath Part 197 of the Code of Prison Process (now Part 218 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023) for instances involving public servants. The ED subsequently positioned the sanction order earlier than the particular courtroom at Rouse Avenue to expedite trial proceedings.
“The event stems from an investigation initiated beneath PMLA, 2002, in reference to the CBI’s FIR registered on October 9, 2011 within the Aircel-Maxis case,” an ED spokesperson stated in an announcement.
The CBI had alleged that in 2006, then finance minister Chidambaram had accepted Overseas Funding Promotion Board (FIPB) clearance to Aircel-Maxis for a overseas direct funding (FDI) proposal of USD 800 million (roughly Rs 3,565 crore), a call that, as per process, ought to have been cleared by the Cupboard Committee on Financial Affairs (CCEA) because it exceeded the minister’s approval restrict of Rs 600 crore.
“The ED’s investigation alleged that the approval was granted in trade for quid professional quo advantages and that unlawful gratification amounting to Rs 1.16 crore was obtained by way of firms linked to Chidambaram’s son Karti Chidambaram — specifically Benefit Strategic Consulting Pvt. Ltd. and Chess Administration Providers Pvt. Ltd. These funds had been later recognized as ‘proceeds of crime’ and provisionally hooked up in 2017, with the attachment confirmed by the Adjudicating Authority in 2018,” the spokesperson stated.
“The company filed its first prosecution criticism beneath PMLA in June 2018, adopted by a supplementary criticism in October that yr, naming Chidambaram as accused no 6. The particular courtroom took cognizance of the alleged cash laundering offence in November 2021,” the spokesperson stated.