CBI raids Congress leader Karti Chidambaram's Chennai house

Chennai, July 9: The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) on Saturday conducted a raid at the Chennai house of Congress leader Karti Chidambaram, reports ANI.

As per the reports, six CBI officials have carried out the raid on a room in Chidambaram's house in Nungambakkam area in Chennai. The keys of the said room were in the MP's possession when the central agency raided his house the last time as he was in London.

"CBI search at Congress leader Karti Chidambaram's residence in Chennai is in connection with an alleged Chinese visa scam, as part of a search that remained incomplete earlier as a few biometric lockers could not be searched," ANI quoted a source as saying in a tweet.

Earlier, the Enforcement Directorate (ED) filed a money laundering case in an alleged Chinese visa scam involving Congress MP Karti Chidambaram, officials said earlier.

It is alleged that Karti received illegal gratification of Rs 50 lakh to illegally facilitate visas for 263 Chinese nationals' to complete a power project in Punjab.

The ED registered the case under the criminal sections of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act, taking cognisance of a First Information Report registered by the Central Bureau of Investigation in the case.

Karti 'misused his influence' in the Home Ministry in 2011 and 'conspired' with co-accused to devise a "back-door way to defeat the purpose of the ceiling" on work permits imposed by the Ministry, CBI has alleged. Karti's father and senior Congress leader P Chidambaram was Home Minister in 2011.

Besides Karti, four others have been booked by the CBI. The four co-accused are Karti's chartered accountant S Bhaskararaman, Vikas Makharia, representative of Talwandi Sabo Power Ltd, a Mansa-based private company, and Bell Tools, Mumbai, have been named. The FIR also mentions "unknown public servants and private individuals" too.

On May 17, CBI arrested S Bhaskarraman close in the alleged visa scam.