Indrani Mukerjea claims to have paid $5 million to P Chidambaram, son Karti in bribe, says CBI chargesheet

Agencies
October 19, 2019

New Delhi, Oct 19: Indrani Mukerjea has claimed to have paid a bribe of US $5 million to former Finance Minister and Congress leader P. Chidambaram and his son Karti Chidambaram through offshore payments in Singapore, Mauritius, Bermuda, the UK and Switzerland, the Central Bureau of Investigation stated in the chargesheet filed in a special court on Friday in the INX Media case.

The CBI also stated that it is awaiting response to its Letters Rogatory (formal request to a foreign court for judicial assistance) sent to five countries.

The agency filed a chargesheet against four entities and ten people under sections 120B (criminal conspiracy), 420 (cheating), 468 (forgery), 471 (signing a forged document as genuine) of Indian Penal Code and Section 9 (taking gratification, for exercise of personal influence with public servant), 13(1)(d) (abusing one’s position as a public servant) of 13(2) (public servant who commits criminal misconduct) of Prevention of Corruption Act.

The four entities charged are INX Media Private Limited (currently 9X Media Private Limited), INX News Private Limited (Direct News), Chess Management Services Private Limited and Advantage Strategic Consulting Private Limited (ASCPL).

The agency has charged P Chidambaram, then finance minister, his son Karti P Chidambaram, Ajeet Kumar Dungdung, the then section officer of Foreign Investment Promotion Board (FIPB) unit at Ministry of Finance, Rabindra Prasad, then under secretary at FIPB unit, Pradeep Kumar Bagga, then officer on special duty at Department of Economic Affairs, Prabodh Saxena, then director FIPB, Anup K Pujari, then Joint Secretary (Foreign Trade) Department of Economic Affairs, Sindhushree Khullar, then additional secretary, S Bhaskararaman, Chartered Accountant, and Peter Mukherjea, then director INX Media Limited.

The CBI has made Indrani Mukerjea, who is currently in jail in Mumbai in connection with the murder of her daughter Sheena Bora, approver in the case. She in her statement to CBI also stated that a meeting with P. Chidambaram to discuss the modalities of illegal gratification was held between March/April 2007.

The agency stated that CBI had registered a case in May 2017 to investigate corruption in INX Media Private Limited which had received foreign investment Rs 403.07 crore against approved foreign direct investment (FDI) of Rs 4.62 crore.

Further, this company illegally invested Rs 40.91 crore in its sister concern INX News Pvt Limited from the received FDI amount without approval from FIPB in violation of provisions of Foreign Exchange Maintenance Act.

During investigation, it was found that Indrani and Peter, directors of INX Media Private Limited, entered into a criminal conspiracy with the then finance minister P Chidambaram and his son Karti Chidambaram (the then director Chess Management Services Pvt Limited) and the then public servants of FIPB unit, Department of Economic Affairs for getting the issue settled without any penal action against them.

“This caused undue pecuniary advantage to the companies concerned in terms of possible penalty under FEMA which could have been up to three times the total amount received,” said a senior CBI officer.

The chargesheet stated that Karti had floated a front company, ASCPL, for receiving illegal payoffs in the guise of various consultancies and other fees and payments.INX Media had also made a payment of Rs 9.96 lakh into the account of ASCPL.

“An illegal payoff without delivering any service,” said CBI adding that further probe into the matter is on.

The Enforcement Directorate (ED) too had filed a money laundering case against Chidambaram in this regard in 2017. In the case, a Delhi court on Thursday sent P. Chidambaram to custodial interrogation by the Enforcement Directorate till October 24.

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Agencies
February 16,2020

Lucknow, Feb 16: Resident doctors at the AMU's Jawaharlal Nehru Hospital on Sunday demanded that the charges slapped against Dr Kafeel Khan under the National Security Act be withdrawn.

Dr Khan was arrested by the UP Special Task Force from Mumbai on January 29 in connection with a speech he had delivered during an anti-CAA protest at Aligarh Muslim University on December 12.

The Resident Doctors' Association (RDA) held a protest march on the hospital campus against the slapping of the NSA against the Gorakhpur doctor after he was granted bail in connection with the alleged hate speech.

RDA president Dr Hamza Malik said the move was a "blatant attempt to crush dissent and a violation of the Constitution of india".

He said by targeting the doctor, the UP government had done a great disservice to the entire medical community.

The AMU Students' Coordination Committee also described the decision to charge Dr Kafeel under the NSA a "direct assault" on a member of the medical fraternity who is "known for his upright behaviour and a champion of free speech".

Committee spokesperson and former AMU Students' Union president Faizul Hasan said by charging Dr Kafeel under the NSA even after he got bail was "a direct violation of a Supreme Court ruling on such issues".

Hasan said Dr Kafeel's fate should serve as an eye-opener for the rest of the country regarding the democratic rights in Uttar Pradesh.

The doctor was earlier arrested for his alleged role in the death of over 60 children within an week at the BRD Medical College in Gorakhpur in August 2017. Short supply of oxygen at the children's ward was blamed at that time for the deaths.

About two years later, a state government probe cleared Khan of all major charges, prompting him to seek an apology from the Yogi Adityanath government.

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Agencies
June 25,2020

Patna, Jun 25: At least 83 people died due to thunderstorms in Bihar in the last 24 hours, according to Chief Minister's Office.

Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar announced Rs 4 lakhs each for the families of deceased.

Thirteen people died in Gopalganj, 8 each in Madhubani and Nawada, 6 each in Baghalpur and Siwan, 5 each in Darbhanga, Banka, East Champaran and 3 each in Khagaria and Aurangabad.

Due to thunderstorms, two people each lost their lives in West Champaran, Kishanganj, Jamui, Jahanabad, Purnia, Supaul, Buxar, Kaimur while one death each was reported in Samastipur, Shivhar, Saran, Sitamarhi and Madhepura.

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News Network
May 21,2020

London, May 21: Working mothers in Europe and the United States are taking on most of the extra housework and childcare created by lockdown - and many are struggling to cope, a survey showed on Thursday.

Women with children now spend an average 65 hours a week on the unpaid chores - nearly a third more than fathers - according to the Boston Consulting Group, which questioned parents in five countries.

"Women have been doing too much household work for too long, and this crisis is pushing them to a point that's simply unsustainable," Rachel Thomas, of U.S.-based women's rights group LeanIn.Org, said in response to the data.

"We need a major culture shift in our homes and in our companies ... We should use this moment to build a better way to work and live – one that's fair for everybody."

Researchers say fallout from the pandemic weighs on women in a host of ways, be it in rising domestic violence or in lower wages, as some women cut paid work to take on the new duties.

With lockdowns shutting schools and keeping citizens at home, creating a mountain of domestic work, public campaigns from Georgia to Mexico have urged men to do their fair share.

But women, who on average already do more at home than men, are now shouldering most of the new coronavirus burden, too, said the survey of more than 3,000 working parents in the United States, Britain, Italy, Germany and France.

Women's unpaid hours at home have nearly doubled to 65 hours a week, said the survey, against 50 logged by an average father.

British women are more likely to support others in the COVID-19 pandemic and are finding it harder to stay positive, according to separate analysis released this week by polling firm Ipsos MORI and feminist organisation The Fawcett Society.

It is "no surprise" to see women do more childcare and housekeeping on top of their day jobs, Jacqui Hunt of women's rights group Equality Now, told the Thomson Reuters Foundation.

However, there are "hopeful signs" that men in West Africa are sharing more childcare during the pandemic in a shift in social norms, found a small rapid analysis by humanitarian organisation CARE International released on Wednesday.

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