The documents produced by the businessman Kathirvel, who approached the Delhi High Court for CBI action for grabbing his hotel by former Finance Minister P Chidambaram’s family shows that wife Nalini Chidambaram was directly involved in the arm-twisting. Telephone conversation transcripts with Nalini and Kathirvel attached in the petition before the High Court show that clear abuse of power happened in 2008 for grabbing the hotel by Nalini’s sister Padmini in connivance with several Indian Overseas Bank (IOB) officials.

In the letter Chidambaram claimed that he had told Nalini not to interfere on the issue.

Delhi High Court on April 25 directed CBI to file status report on the probe in Kathirvel’s complaint against Chidambaram’s family members and errant IOB officers in capturing his hotel Comfort Inn in Tirupur in Tamil Nadu. Arguing before Justice R K Gauba, the businessman’s lawyer Yatinder Chaudhary pointed out the transcripts exposing former Finance Minister’s wife’s role on the matter. He said that the complainant can provide CBI many such audio clips of the family members of Chidambaram and the bank officials in arm-twisting. The petition also attached a photocopy of the Rs.2.5 crores as compensation in cheque given to Kathirvel by Nalini during compromise talks.

The conversations of Nalini with Kathirvel happened on May 11 and 12 in the year 2008. This happened a few days after Chidambaram wrote and phoned to Kathirvel, pretending his innocence on the hotel grabbing by sister-in-law Padmini with help of the bankers. In the letter, Chidambaram claimed that he had told Nalini not to interfere on the issue.

“Bank only had symbolic possession and they took physical possession with the help of goondas because they knew about Honourable Supreme Court Order. Don’t’ tell anybody that I am involved,” said Nalini. This should cast a spotlight on the arrogance of Nalini, a Senior Lawyer in Supreme Court, in evading the law and possibly blocking the opposite party getting a favorable order from Supreme Court. A Senior Lawyer of Supreme Court saying her sister used goons to take physical possession of the hotel knowing that Supreme Court may issue some orders!

Nalini also reminds Kathirvel that if it was not for her husband, any other politician would have put him behind the bars. This was her response when Kathirvel reminded her about Chidambaram’s letter and a later phone call to him on May 8, 2008. She also tells Kathirvel that she is angry about his attitude and cautions him not to scandalise the issue.

The hotel is worth more than Rs. 10 crores ($1.5 million) and had a loan due of Rs. 2.5 crores ($375,000) with the IOB and IOB declared the loan as a Non-Performing Asset (NPA) and announced auction.

The two-page telephone conversation transcript produced by Kathirvel in the High Court is published at the end of the article.

Kathirvel is a businessman in his late 40s and runs a hotel, poultry, education and real estate business in the southern states. According to his complaint to CBI, in 2008, ‘Comfort Inn’, a hotel in Tirupur in which he was a partner, was grabbed by Padmini, sister of Chidambaram’s wife Nalini with the help of top management of Indian Overseas Bank (IOB). The hotel is worth more than Rs. 10 crores ($1.5 million) and had a loan due of Rs. 2.5 crores ($375,000) with the IOB and IOB declared the loan as a Non-Performing Asset (NPA) and announced auction. Kathirvel approached Madras High Court and later Debt Recovery Tribunal and paid Rs. 64 lakhs ($96,000) to the IOB to avoid the auction. Chidambaram was the Finance Minister then.

After receiving Rs. 64 lakhs ($96,000), the Bank promised cancellation of the auction. According to the complaint, the Bank cheated him and conducted a farce auction and allotted the hotel to Padmini at a very cheap rate of Rs. 4.5 crores ($675,000). The hotel’s value was more than Rs. 10 crores ($1.5 million) and all of a sudden Padmini with the help of mob of goons barged into the hotel and forcefully acquired the hotel. The full details of this case can be accessed from earlier article: https://www.pgurus.com/businessman-kathirvel-files-complaint-cbi-chidambaram-family-iob-hotel-grab/

Delhi High Court has now directed CBI to submit a detailed status report on the matter by July 25.

Adv. Yatinder Chaudhary’s Tweet:



Transcripts of conversation between Dr. Kathirvel and Nalini Chidambaram