NEW DELHI (AP) — Federal investigators have arrested a key opposition Indian National Congress party leader at his home.

Palaniappan Chidambaram was taken into custody on suspicion of conspiring with a Mauritius-based firm to illegally obtain money for his son’s company while he was India’s finance minister in 2006.

Abhishek Dayal, a spokesman for the Central Bureau of Investigation, confirmed the arrest.

Investigators took Chidambaram from his New Delhi home on Aug. 21 night and drove him to the Central Bureau of Investigation’s office.

His son Karti Chidambaram has already been named as a defendant in the money-laundering case involving 3 billion rupees ($43 million).

Chidambaram denies the allegation and accuses Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s government of pursuing a political vendetta.

He suffered a setback as a court Aug. 20 rejected his bail plea in the case. </s> An Indian court on Thursday ordered that a former finance minister belonging to the opposition Congress party be held for four days for questioning by investigators in suspected bribery and money laundering cases.

Palaniappan Chidambaram appeared before Judge Ajay Kumar Kuhar a day after he was arrested by the Central Bureau of Investigation, India's FBI, at his New Delhi home.

Government Solicitor-General Tushar Mehta asked for five days' custody for a detailed questioning of Chidambaram, but the judge agreed to four days.

Prosecutors say Chidambaram as the country's finance minister in 2007 facilitated 3 billion rupees ($43 million) in foreign investment in an Indian media company, which allegedly paid kickbacks to his son, Karti Chidambaram. His son has been named as a defendant in the case.

Times Now television channel quoted the CBI as saying that kickbacks amounted to $5 million.

Chidambaram and his son deny the allegations and accuse Prime Minister Narendra Modi's government of pursuing a political vendetta.

Modi's Hindu-nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party came to power after defeating a Congress party government in 2014 and won a second term in 2019 national elections. Several senior Congress politicians and high-ranking government officials faced bribery charges after the hosting of the New Delhi 2010 Commonwealth Games.

For years, anti-corruption campaigners have said the party in power uses the top investigating agency to cover up wrongdoing and target political opponents. </s> NEW DELHI: Police arrested former Indian finance minister P. Chidambaram late on Wednesday (Aug 21) in relation to alleged corruption and money laundering, a day after the Delhi High Court rejected his application to seek exemption from arrest.

Chidambaram was arrested by federal police on a warrant issued by a competent court, a spokesman for the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) said.

The CBI and Enforcement Directorate - India's financial crime fighting agency - have alleged that Chidambaram abused his official position while he was finance minister. Officials have also alleged Chidambaram was involved in money laundering and conspired around the approval of a telecommunications deal in 2006.

Chidambaram denied any wrongdoing, speaking at a news conference hours before his arrest.

Chidambaram, who served twice as finance minister in the previous Congress party-led coalition that ran India for a decade, has approached India's top court seeking to appeal the High Court ruling rejecting his application to prevent an arrest.

The Supreme Court is due to hear his petition on Friday.

"Between now and Friday, I shall walk with a clear conscience and my head held high," Chidambaram told reporters.

After the press conference, in dramatic scenes televised across Indian media, police officers reached Chidambaram's residence and jumped over the wall to enter the premises.

He was then taken away in a car that his party supporters tried to stop briefly, local media reported.

The allegations in the case centre around the role of Chidambaram, who is a senior leader of the Congress party that is now in opposition, his son Karti Chidambaram, and several former government officials, in approving the acquisition of telecoms firm, Aircel Ltd, by a Malaysian firm, Maxis Bhd.

The individuals accused in the case face charges of "abuse of official position and criminal conspiracy in giving illegal approval," a CBI official told reporters last month.

Maxis and Karti Chidambaram have previously called the allegations unfounded.

Chidambaram, 72, a Supreme Court lawyer, has been a vocal critic of Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his policies. </s> Police investigators in India have arrested the country's former finance minister, Palaniappan Chidambaram, on suspicion of involvement in corruption and money laundering.

Dozens of officers from the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) scaled the walls of Chidambaram's house in India's capital, New Delhi, before taking him away in a car late on Wednesday, the Press Trust of India reported.

His supporters tried to prevent the arrest by jumping onto the car, according to a video posted on Twitter by the ANI news agency.

Abhishek Dayal, a spokesman for the CBI, confirmed the arrest to the Associated Press news agency.

Earlier on Wednesday, the CBI had alerted airports to prevent the 73-year-old Chidambaram from leaving the country.

The CBI has accused Chidambaram, finance minister from 2004-2008 and again from 2012-2014, of abusing his official position and involvement in money laundering in clearing foreign direct investments worth tens of millions of dollars.

His son, Karti Chidambaram, has already been named as a defendant in the money-laundering case involving three billion rupees ($43m).

Chidambaram, a member of the opposition Congress Party, has denied any wrongdoing and accused Prime Minister Narendra Modi's government of pursuing a "political vendetta" against him.

Modi's Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party came to power after defeating a Congress party government in 2014 and won a second term in 2019 national elections.

Chidambaram was taken into custody a day after the Delhi High Court rejected his application to seek exemption from arrest. His lawyers approached the Supreme Court to prevent his arrest and the top court is due to hear his petition on Friday.

Investigators could not find him until Wednesday evening, when he unexpectedly appeared at the Congress party headquarters for a news conference.

He appealed to officials to wait until Friday for a ruling by the top court, and called his accusers "pathological liars".

Teams of CBI officials then rushed to the Congress party's headquarters and later his home in the Jor Bagh neighbourhood to arrest him. </s> (Bloomberg) -- India’s former finance minister and a senior leader of the main opposition Congress party, Palaniappan Chidambaram, has been arrested by the country’s federal investigative agency for alleged irregularities during his tenure as finance minister.

Chidambaram and his Congress party have accused the government of Prime Minister Narendra Modi of targeting opposition leaders, calling the action a “political vendetta.”

A lawyer with a degree from Harvard Business School, Chidambaram is one of the most prominent members of the Congress party and is a lawmaker in the upper house of parliament.

He’s been facing allegations since May 2017, when the Central Bureau of Investigation registered a case against his son and unknown officials from the finance ministry for corruption and irregularities in an overseas investment approval when Chidambaram was the finance minister in 2007. Since then, the Enforcement Directorate which investigates financial crimes has also begun investigating a case of alleged money laundering.

Chidambaram had sought interim protection in both cases, however the Delhi High Court on Tuesday refused to grant him bail, saying he appeared to be “kingpin” and “key conspirator” of the alleged scam.

Now 73, he was finance minister for more than six years in Manmohan Singh’s Congress-led coalition government until 2014 and was also the country’s home minister following the November 2008 terrorist attacks in Mumbai.

Chidambaram could not be reached for comment. Earlier he denied all allegations and said the government has been intimidating him to silence his criticisms of the Modi administration.

To contact the reporter on this story: Bibhudatta Pradhan in New Delhi at bpradhan@bloomberg.net

To contact the editors responsible for this story: Ruth Pollard at rpollard2@bloomberg.net, Unni Krishnan </s> High drama unfolded in New Delhi late Wednesday as officers from India's equivalent of the FBI scaled the walls of a former finance minister's home to arrest him on corruption charges, local media reported.

Earlier in the day, the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) had alerted airports to prevent Palaniappan Chidambaram, finance minister from 2004-2008 and again from 2012-2014, from leaving the country.

Chidambaram, 73, earlier this week failed to secure bail and had not been seen since Tuesday, until he showed up at the headquarters of the opposition Congress party on Wednesday to proclaim his innocence.

At a news conference, he called his accusers "pathological liars".

India's former Finance Minister Palaniappan Chidambaram (C) sits in a vehicle after he was arrested by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) officials in his residence in New Delhi, India.

Driving then to his home in the upscale Jor Bagh neighbourhood, he was tailed by around 30 CBI officers who knocked at the doors before scaling the boundary walls, the Press Trust of India reported.

Once three officers were inside, they opened the gates to allow team members to enter, while others rushed to the back door to secure all exit points, PTI reported.

After Chidamabaram was arrested, party supporters gathered outside the home to protest. Some jumped on the car in which the politician was taken away, the agency said.

Karti Chidambaram, son of former Finance Minister P. Chidambaram, leaves a protest against the detention of political leaders in Kashmir after the scrapping of the special constitutional status by the Indian government, India. Photos: Reuters

Chidambaram has been charged in relation to alleged kickbacks and money laundering involving a media company when he was finance minister under former premier Manmohan Singh.

He was expected to appear in a special CBI court on Thursday, PTI reported. </s> NEW DELHI: Police arrested former Indian finance minister P. Chidambaram late on Wednesday over alleged corruption and money laundering, a day after the Delhi High Court rejected his application to seek exemption from arrest.

Chidambaram was arrested by federal police on a warrant issued by a competent court, a spokesman for the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) said.

The CBI and Enforcement Directorate - India's financial crime fighting agency - have alleged that Chidambaram abused his official position while he was finance minister. Officials have also alleged that Chidambaram was involved in money laundering and conspired around the approval of a telecommunications deal in 2006.

Speaking at a news conference hours before his arrest, Chidambaram denied any wrongdoing.

Chidambaram, who served twice as finance minister in the previous Congress party-led coalition that ran India for a decade, has approached India's top court seeking to appeal against the High Court ruling rejecting his application to prevent an arrest.

The Supreme Court is due to hear his petition today.

"Between now and Friday, I shall walk with a clear conscience and my head held high," Chidambaram told reporters.

After the press conference, in dramatic scenes televised across Indian media, police officers reached Chidambaram's residence and jumped over the wall to enter the premises.

He was then taken away in a car that his party supporters tried to stop briefly, local media reported. </s> Two Indian investigative agencies – the Central Bureau of Investigation and the economic intelligence agency - Enforcement Directorate, had sought to take Chidambaram into custody for questioning on Tuesday. Since they weren't able to find him, the investigative agencies posted a notice outside his home.

Chidambaram is facing charges for allegedly facilitating foreign investment in a media company while he was Finance Minister in the former Congress Party-lead coalition government, when he provided his son with financial favours.

The former cabinet minister had approached the High Court of Delhi for anticipatory bail, but the court rejected his plea, saying “the petitioner is the kingpin or key conspirator in the case,” leaving it open for the investigative agencies to take him into custody.

On Wednesday, the Enforcement Directorate issued a ‘Look Out Notice’, to prevent Chidambaram from leaving the country.

The former minister, through a team of India's top lawyers, approached the Supreme Court of India for relief against the High Court order. However, he has not been granted a hearing so far.

“The antecedents of the Petitioner are impeccable. He has never been an accused of any offence. There is no possibility of his fleeing from justice," Chidambaram’s lawyers argued in the top court, adding "custodial interrogation is not at all warranted".

Meanwhile, the opposition Congress Party has voiced their support for Chidambaram.

​Former Congress President Rahul Gandhi accused Prime Minister Narendra Modi of using the Enforcement Directorate to character assassinate Chidambaram. His sister and General Secretary of the Congress Party Priyanka Gandhi Vadra said, “the truth is inconvenient to cowards, so he is being shamefully hunted down”.

​Chidambaram, who is strident critic of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s policies, is also embroiled in an aviation scandal. </s> Image copyright Press Trust of India Image caption Mr Chidambaram is a former finance minister

India's former finance minister, Palaniappan Chidambaram, has been remanded in police custody by a federal investigative court.

The four-day remand enables him to be interrogated by officers from the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI).

He is being investigated over allegations that he cleared foreign investments in exchange for bribes while he was finance minister in 2007.

Mr Chidambaram, 73, has denied any wrongdoing.

He appeared before the court on Thursday evening following his arrest amid chaotic scenes on Wednesday night.

'Vendetta'

The court ruled that during his remand, he would have daily access to his family and lawyers and would undergo a medical check-up every 48 hours.

A senior member of the main opposition Congress party and an MP since 1984, Mr Chidambaram has also served as home minister.

Officers from the CBI scaled the walls of his Delhi home on Wednesday to arrest him. Chaotic scenes unfolded as supporters and media surrounded his car as he was driven away.

The Delhi High Court had rejected an application for bail on Tuesday and hours before his arrest Mr Chidambaram's legal team had approached the Supreme Court.

His lawyer told the court that the Bharatiya Janata Party-led government was carrying out a "politically-motivated vendetta" against Mr Chidambaram and his son, Karti, who is also implicated in the case.

Senior Congress leaders have also accused the BJP of "misusing power".

Skip Twitter post by @RahulGandhi Modi's Govt is using the ED, CBI & sections of a spineless media to character assassinate Mr Chidambaram.



I strongly condemn this disgraceful misuse of power. — Rahul Gandhi (@RahulGandhi) August 21, 2019 Report

The BJP has not responded to the allegations, but its spokesperson told the NDTV news website that Congress should be ashamed that Mr Chidambaram had turned into an "absconder".

Earlier on Wednesday, the CBI had said they could not find Mr Chidambaram. But he then appeared at a press conference to reject accusations that he had been "hiding from the law", saying he had instead been consulting with his lawyers.

A Harvard Business School graduate, Mr Chidambaram has served as finance minister four times.

His first two stints - between June 1996 and March 1998 - were in successive coalition governments, both of which collapsed about a year after they were formed. During his brief second term, he slashed taxes, including corporate rates, as part of what the Indian media hailed as a "dream budget".

He again served as finance minister under the Congress-led government from 2004 to 2008 before he was appointed home minister. He replaced Shivraj Patil, who resigned amid criticism in the wake of the Mumbai attacks.

Image copyright Getty Images Image caption Mr Chidambaram's son, Karti Chidambaram, is a Congress party MP

He is also a lawyer and has practised in the Madras High Court and the Supreme Court.

He is being questioned over allegations that he cleared foreign direct investment worth tens of millions of dollars to INX Media in 2007 when he was finance minister. Karti Chidambaram allegedly received kickbacks from INX at the time that the investment was cleared by the finance ministry.

Both men, who strongly deny the allegations, are being investigated by the CBI and the Enforcement Directorate (ED), which investigates financial crimes.

The CBI arrested Karti Chidambaram in 2018, but he was later released on bail. He is a Congress MP from the southern state of Tamil Nadu.
Indian senior opposition Rajya Sabha MP and former Cabinet Minister Palaniappan Chidambaram is arrested by the Central Bureau of Investigation on charges of corruption and money laundering during his term as Minister of Finance. Chidambaram says to the Supreme Court that the government is practicing a "politically-motivated vendetta" against him and his son Karti, who is also an opposition MP.