By Aditya Raj Das / New Delhi
Much to the chagrin of the Congress Party the BJP-led NDA government today asserted in the Lok Sabha that it would not let ongoing probe into irregularities in the AugustaWestland Chopper deal go Bofors way and investigation would be brought to “logical conclusion”.
Replying to a calling attention motion on the recent disclosures by Italian Court of Appeals, Milan in alleged irregularities in Agusta Westland Helicopter deal, Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar said he would not let the investigation go the Bofors way.
He said, he is monitoring the progress of CBI and Enforcement Directorate which are pursuing the investigation. He said, CBI is seriously investigating the matter.Mr Parrikar said, he will recover the 398 million Euro as damage in the case from the company.
“We will not let the investigation (into irregularities in the Augusta deal) go the Bofors way,” the Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar asserted while replying to a calling attention motion on the recent disclosures by Italian Court of Appeals, Milan in alleged irregularities in Agusta Westland Helicopter deal.
Amidst walkout by the members of the Congress Party he said the government was constantly monitoring the progress of CBI and Enforcement Directorate which are pursuing the investigation.
“The CBI is seriously investigating the matter. We will recover the 398 million Euro as damage in the case from the company”, Parrikar said
In response to members’ demand that the probe should be monitored by the Supreme Court, the Defence Minister said, the Apex Court is already overburdened and it is not necessary that every investigation should be monitored by it.
While giving details about the action taken so far in the scam since the NDA came to power in 2014 he said the then Congress-led UPA government created single vendor situation in the Rs 3600 crore AgustaWestland VVIP chopper deal.
Attacking the then UPA regime for not taking pro-active action on probe into irregularities in the chopper deal the CBI registered FIR in the alleged scam in March 2013, but copy of FIR was not forwarded to Enforcement Directorate till December 2013.
Launching a scathing attack on the previous UPA government, the Defence Minister said, “UPA did not take any action against the company. It was almost made compulsory by circumstances that it acted.”
The ED took notice of AgustaWestland case only when Union Minister Arun Jaitley became the Defence Minister in July 2014, he said.
Parrikar said the UPA government knew about the scam in February 2012 but still three helicopters were delivered in December, 2012.
On January 01, 2014, India scrapped the contract with Finmeccanica’s British subsidiary AgustaWestland for supplying 12 AW101 VVIP choppers to the Indian Air Force (IAF) over alleged breach of contractual obligations and charges of paying kickbacks to the tune of Rs 423 crore by it for securing the deal.
The issue has become major political affair in the country after a court in Milan, Italy, jailed AgustaWestland’s former head Bruno Spagnolini on the charges of false accounting and corruption in the sale of the firm’s 12 VVIP choppers to India.
Accusing the UPA government for “total inaction” on the probe front, the Defence Minister said, the UPA government did everything to award the contract to AgustaWestland.
He said the previous regime’s action against the deal was forced by circumstances and the enquiry into it was not initiated until it became unavoidable, He said former Air Chief Marshal S.P. Tyagi and lawyer Gautam Khaitan, who were questioned by the CBI in the case are small fries” and the government has to find the “big names” who received the kickbacks in the deal.
Parrikar claimed the procurement procedure was not followed in the deal .Also there were discrepancies in the base price. The Minister said the UPA regime knew about the scam in February 2012 but still three helicopters were delivered in December that year.
He added that the CBI registered an FIR in the matter in March 2013, but its copy was not forwarded to Enforcement Directorate for nine months.
He also said the ED took notice of case only in July 2014 after NDA came into power. Earlier, initiating the discussion, Anurag Thakur of the BJP said now it is clear that there was corruption in the deal.
Jyotiraditya Scindia of the Congress said that the UPA took action immediately after media report.
Winding up his reply Parrikar said “the main action required now is to trace, detect and unmask the means of these corrupt practices and bribery through a thorough enquiry by the investigation agencies.”
“The government will leave no stone unturned to bring to justice those that have committed these corrupt practices against our national interest,” Parrikar said.
