CBI Arrests P Chidambaram After A Series of Dramatic Events

“To win freedom we must struggle. To preserve freedom too we must struggle”, said Chidambaram in his address at AICC

(Photo: PTI)

Video Editor: Mohd Irshad Alam

Former Union Minister P Chidambaram was arrested by the CBI on Wednesday, 21 August, and taken to its headquarters after after a team comprising ED and CBI officials reached his residence.

Before his arrest, high drama ensued as the CBI team scaled the walls to enter the premises.

Earlier, in a dramatic move, former Finance Minister P Chidambaram, facing arrest in cases of corruption and money laundering, appeared at the Congress headquarters to declare his innocence and asked probe agencies to "respect" the law till the Supreme Court hears his bail plea on Friday.

He said he was working with his lawyers through the previous night and preparing his papers for his bail application, to be filed before the Supreme Court.

“Respect for law can mean only one thing, wait for Supreme Court justice on Friday... Until Friday and beyond, let’s hope the lamp of liberty will shine bright and illuminate the whole country. I will respect law even if applied with an unequal hand by probe agencies.”

P Chidambaram, Former Finance Minister

Chidambaram, who failed to get immediate relief from the Supreme Court on his plea to stay the Delhi High Court order dismissing his anticipatory bail petition on Tuesday, put up a strong defense for himself and his family members, saying none of them have been directly accused of any offence by the probe agencies in the FIR or the charge sheet.

Flanked by party colleagues and senior lawyers Kapil Sibal and Abhishek Singhvi, who are also representing him in the cases, Chidambaram said there is no charge sheet filed by either the CBI or the ED before a competent court.

He also said the FIR recorded by the CBI does not impute him of any wrongdoing.

“Yet, there is a widespread impression that grave offences have been committed by me and that my son... Nothing can be further from the truth. These are lies spread by pathological liars.”

P Chidambaram, Former Finance Minister

"I am aghast that I was accused of hiding from the law. On the contrary, I was seeking the protection of the law. I was aghast that I was accused of running away from justice. On the contrary, I was engaged in the pursuit of justice," Chidambaram said while rejecting allegations of him evading investigating agencies.

"To win freedom we must struggle. To preserve freedom too, we must struggle," he said.

(With inputs from PTI)