INX Media Money Laundering Case: Karti Chidambaram Moves Madras High Court Against Attachment Of Assets By ED

Sivaganga MP Karti P Chidambaram has approached the Madras High Court, challenging an order passed by the Appellate Tribunal under the Smugglers and Foreign Exchange Manipulators Act (SAFEMA) at Delhi (PMLA Appellate Tribunal), dismissing his plea against the attachment of properties by the Enforcement Directorate in the INX Media money laundering case. When the matter came up before Chief Justice SA Dharmadhikari and Justice G Arul Murugan, Senior Advocate Vijay Narayanan, appearing for Karthi Chidambaram, informed the court that he had filed a similar plea seeking similar relief in another case. He requested the court to tag the two matters. The court allowed the request and directed the registry to tag the two matters. ED Special Prosecutor N Ramesh took notice for the ED, and the department was asked to file its response to the plea. Karti has challenged the order passed by the Appellate tribunal on October 29, 2025. The challenge is with respect to the attachment made by the ED on October 18, 2018, provisionally attaching assets worth Rs 22.28 crore, including a 50 percent share in a flat at Jor Bagh, New Delhi, and seven bank accounts in Chennai, with a combined balance of over Rs 6 crore. Challenging the attachment, Karti Chidambaram has argued that under Section 8(3)(a) of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act, attachments can continue only for 365 days after confirmation unless a case is pending before the court. He pointed out that the Prosecution Complaint was filed 430 days after the Adjudicating Authority's order, contending that this lapse made the confirmation invalid. Relying on the Supreme Court's ruling in S. Kasi v. State (2020), his counsel argued that no attachment could continue unless proceedings were pending before a court. The appellate tribunal, however, rejected this contention noting that mere delay in filing the Prosecution Complaint did not invalidate the attachment. The tribunal noted that the Supreme Court's COVID-19 limitation extension order applied to the case. It observed that the fact that the ED filed its Prosecution Complaint on June 1, 2020, beyond the 365 day statutory limit prescribed from the attachment confirmation order, did not affect the legality of the attachment. In the connected case, Karti has challenged an order passed by the Appellate Tribunal on June 5, 2025, dismissing his appeal under Section 26 of the PMLA against the order of the Adjudicating Authority under PMLA, which had confirmed the provisional attachment of his property worth Rs. 1.16 Crore. The Directorate had attached the properties in connection with the Aircel-Maxis cases. Counsel for Petitioner: Senior Advocate Vijay Narayanan Counsel for Respondent: Mr N Ramesh, Special Prosecutor Case Title: Karti P Chidambaram v The Deputy Director, ED Case No: CMA 996 of 2026

INX Media Money Laundering Case: Karti Chidambaram Moves Madras High Court Against Attachment Of Assets By ED

Upasana Sajeev

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