Aircel-Maxis case: Court grants protection to Chidambaram, seeks ED's response

Chidambaram has been asked to appear before the ED on June 5 and declared that no coercive action can be taken against him till then.

New Delhi: Delhi Patiala House court on Wednesday sought a reply of Enforcement Directorate on the anticipatory bail plea moved by former Finance Minsiter P Chidambaram over Aircel Maxis case and asked ED to reply by June 5 on the same. The court also gave a protection from arrest to Chidambaram, till the next date of hearing. Chidambaram has been asked to appear before the ED on June 5 and declared that no coercive action can be taken against him till then. Aircel Maxis case: The Aircel-Maxis controversy has its roots in the infamous 2G spectrum scam. The SC had asked the CBI to investigate Dayanidhi Maran who was the telecom minister before A Raja. Maran had to resign from the Union Cabinet in April 2011. Aircel is a telecom company owned by C Sivasankaran. Maxis is a Malaysian company owned by  Ananda Krishnan. In 2006, Maxis acquired Aircel by buying 74% stake. In April 2011, Sivasankaran complained to the CBI that Maran had arm twisted hi to sell his stake to Maxis. In October 2011, the CBI filed an FIR against Maran that alleged that he received Rs 549 crore for favouring Aircel in various deals that were owned by maxis. The amount was allegedly received by a company owned by Dayanidhi Maran's brother, Kalanidhi Maran, who controls the Sun TV network. The CBI FIR accuses the Maran brothers of quid pro quo for facilitating the deal for maxis.