SC asks Madras HC to decide pleas over LOC against Karti Chidambaram

New Delhi: The Supreme Court today asked the Madras High Court to decide petitions pertaining to issuance of two Look Out Circulars (LOC) against Karti Chidambaram, son of former Union minister P Chidambaram, and others in a corruption case.

A bench headed by Chief Justice Dipak Misra, however, made clear that the LOCs, issued on June 16 and July 28 last year against the accused shall remain in force till the Madras High Court takes a decision on the petitions.

The bench, which also comprised Justices A M Khanwilkar and D Y Chandrachud, ordered that the division bench headed by the High Court Chief Justice will decide the petitions within two months from today.

It considered the submissions of Additional Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, representing the CBI, that the argument of the probe agency with regard to the fact that the Madras High Court has no territorial jurisdiction to deal with the LOC cases shall be kept open for adjudication.

The bench also empowered the high court to deal with the applications of the accused seeking permission to go abroad on merits. The top court said that it has not expressed any opinion on the merits of the case and asked the high court to deal with them independently.

Earlier, a single judge bench of the Madras High Court had stayed the LOC issued against Karti and others in a graft case relating to grant of Foreign Investment Promotion Board (FIPB) clearance to INX Media for receiving overseas funds to the tune of Rs 305 crore in 2007 when Karti’s father was the Union Finance Minister.

Later, the apex court considered the appeal of CBI and stayed the operation of the High Court order staying the LOC. The Supreme Court, however, had kept to itself another batch of petitions pertaining to registration of FIR in the corruption case.