Govt using CBI to target my son, want to silence my voice: Chidambaram

New Delhi: Reacting to CBI raids on his and his son's houses in Chennai in connection with foreign investment clearances to a media company, former Finance Minister P Chidambaram today asserted that there were no allegations against him or his son and accused the Government of using CBI to target his son and his friends. The home of former union minister P Chidambaram and his son Karti Chidambaram is among more than a dozen places raided in Chennai by the CBI this morning.

The searches are on at 14 places a day after an FIR or police complaint named Karti Chidambaram as an accused in connection with foreign investment clearances to a media company. In a statement, Mr Chidambaram, however, said there was no allegation against him or his son. 'FIPB approval is granted in hundreds of cases.

The five Secretaries who constitute the FIPB, the officials of the FIPB Secretariat and the competent authority in each case are the public officials. There is no allegation against any of them. There is no allegation against me,'Mr Chidambaram said. The allegation is that Karti Chidambaram's company facilitated clearances to INX Media in 2008 for kickbacks. Mr Chidambaram was Finance Minister in the Manmohan Singh government at the time and his role is also being examined, said sources.

Reacting to the allegations, Mr Chidambaram said, 'Every case was processed according to law and approval was granted or refused in accordance with the recommendations of the FIPB consisting of five Secretaries to the Government of India.' Accusing the Government of using CBI to target his son and his friends, Mr Chidambaram said, 'The government, using the CBI and other agencies, is targeting my son and his friends. The government's aim is to silence my voice and stop me from writing, as it has tried to do in the cases of leaders of Opposition parties, journalists, columnists, NGOs and civil society organizations. All I will say is, I shall continue to speak and write.' (UNI)