CBI illegally seized daughter's laptop, IPad, will move court: Karti Chidambaram

After the CBI searched his Chennai home again on Saturday and reportedly seized documents in connection with the alleged Chinese visa scam case, Congress MP Karti P Chidambaram accused the agency of taking away his daughter's laptop.

"When CBI searched the residence located at No 16, Pycrofts Garden Road, Nungambakkam, Chennai on May 17, 2022, they found nothing. There was one cupboard in the residence that was locked and the owner was abroad. That cupboard was opened today and there were only clothes. The CBI found nothing and seized nothing. However, the CBI has illegally seized a laptop and an iPad belonging to my daughter. She is a University student.. that laptop contains her academic work. We have strongly protested the action and will move the Courts against the illegal seinure," Karti Chidambaram's lawyer G.Sarath Babu said.

Yes, my daughter’s laptop is going to be highly incriminating! pic.twitter.com/q3U3FKh8ns — Karti P Chidambaram (@KartiPC) July 9, 2022

According to a CBI source, when the agency conducted searches at Karti Chidambaram's home in May, a portion of the property had to be sealed because the keys were with the Congress MP's wife, who was apparently out of the country at the time.

"Today, Karti Chidambaram's wife joined the probe and we opened this portion of the house. We have recovered some incriminating evidences and documents," said the source.

According to the CBI FIR, in 2011, a Mansa (Punjab) based private firm, Talwandi Sabo Power Ltd, took the help of a middleman and allegedly paid Rs 50 lakh to get visas issued to Chinse nationals to help get a project completed before the deadline.

The Chinese nationals were supposed to work on a project in Punjab. Around nine locations spread over Mumbai, Odisha, Chennai, Karnataka, and Punjab are being raided.

"The private firm was in the process of establishing a 1,980 MW thermal power plant which was outsourced to a Chinese company. The project was running behind its schedule. In order to avoid penal action for the delay, the said private company was trying to bring more and more Chinese professionals to its site in Mansa district. For this it needed project visas over and above the ceiling imposed by Ministry of Home Affairs," said a CBI official.

Karti Chidambaram's father P. Chidambaram was the Union Home Minister then.