NEW DELHI: The Supreme Court on Tuesday granted bail to P Chidmabaram in the INX media case, turning down the CBI’s argument that the former finance minister, if released, could flee the country and tamper with evidence and influence the witnesses.However, Chidambaram , who has been behind bars for nearly two months, will not be a free man even after getting relief as the Enforcement Directorate has taken him into custody for alleged involvement in money laundering arising out of financial transactions in the same case. Now, he will have to fight another round of legal battle to get bail in the ED case.A bench of Justices R Banumathi, A S Bopanna and Hrishikesh Roy said there was no merit in the CBI’s submission that Chidambaram was a flight risk and there was a possibility of him absconding as he had already surrendered his passport and there was a lookout notice issued against him.The Supreme Court also noted that Congress leader P Chidambaram had neither sought permission to travel abroad during 18 months when he was granted interim protection by the HC nor did he make any attempt to flee outside after the registration of the FIR against him. However, the bench restrained the former FM from travelling abroad without the trial court’s permission. The bench also directed him to make himself available for interrogation as and when required by the CBI.Though the Delhi HC had also come to the conclusion that Chidambaram is not a flight risk and he can’t tamper with evidence as documents relating to the case are already in the custody of the prosecuting agency, it rejected his bail plea on the ground that there was a possibility of him influencing the witnesses. The HC had passed the order after perusing a report filed by the CBI in a sealed envelope alleging that the former minister had approached two witnesses and asked them not to reveal any information pertaining to the case.The apex court, however, refused to give credence to the CBI’s allegations. Agreeing with the contention of Chidambaram’s lawyers, senior advocates Kapil Sibal and Abhishek Manu Singhvi, the bench said, “CBI has no direct evidence against the appellant (Chidambaram) regarding the allegation of directly or indirectly influencing the witnesses.” It also asked why the agency raised this ground only when bail plea was filed in the HC and did not mention it before the trial court while seeking his remand on six different dates.“The appellant was granted interim protection on March 31, 2018 till August 20, 2019. Till date, there has been no allegation regarding influencing of any witness by him or his men directly or indirectly. In the number of remand applications, there was no whisper that any material witness has been approached not to disclose information about him and his son. It appears that only at the time of opposing the bail and in the counter-affidavit filed by the CBI before the HC, the averments were made,” the bench said.The court accepted the plea of Sibal and Singhvi, who contended that no material particulars were produced before the HC as to when and how those two material witnesses were approached and said, “In the absence of any contemporaneous materials, no weight could be attached to the allegation that he has been influencing the witnesses by approaching the witnesses.”“Mere averments that the appellant approached the witnesses and the assertion that the appellant would further pressure the witnesses, without any material basis cannot be the reason to deny regular bail to the appellant; more so, when the appellant has been in custody for nearly two months, cooperated with the investigating agency and the chargesheet is also filed,” the court said.