Aircel-Maxis money laundering case: The Delhi High Court on Wednesday stayed the trial court proceedings against senior Congress leader P Chidambaram in the Aircel-Maxis money laundering case. The court also issued a notice to the Enforcement Directorate (ED) in response to Chidambaram’s plea challenging the trial court’s decision to take cognizance of the chargesheet filed against him by the ED. Justice Manoj Kumar Ohri, presiding over the matter, stayed the trial court proceedings and sought the ED’s response. The case has been listed for a detailed hearing in January 2025.
Chidambaram through Senior Advocate N Hariharan assisted by advocates Arshdeep Singh Khurana And Akshat Gupta stated that trial Court Judge, in the Impugned order, erred in taking cognizance of the of the offence under Section 3 of the PMLA, punishable under Section 4 of the PMLA, without any prior Sanction under Section 197(1), CrPC having been obtained by the Respondent/ED for prosecution of the Petitioner herein, despite the fact that the Petitioner was a public servant (being the Finance Minister) at the time the alleged commission of the alleged offence.