NEW DELHI, Apr 2:
The Army has asked the Government to probe charges that a Brigadier had sought a bribe of Rs 25 crore from AgustaWestland, an issue that has led to stalling of procurement of 197 light choppers.
The allegations against the Brigadier surfaced during investigations into the VVIP chopper deal about the alleged involvement of Finmeccanica in paying kickbacks to secure the Indian contract for 12 VVIP choppers.
“The Army Headquarters has asked us to investigate the matter before taking any decision on the future of the deal, in which only two firms European Eurocopter and Russian Kamov are left in the race as AgustaWestland was eliminated before trials itself,” a Defence Ministry source said here.
However, the Ministry has not taken any decision so far on the issue, he said.
The allegations have led to delay in the finalisation of the deal for 197 helicopters for the Army and the IAF to replace its fleet of vintage Cheetah and Chetak choppers. The proposal has been in the pipeline for quite some time.
Recently, in a Defence Acquisition Council (DAC) meeting, the Ministry had asked the Army to take “responsibility” that there was no wrongdoing in the charges against the officer after which the force asked the Government to conduct a probe before taking any further decision, they said.
The DAC also has to take a call on whether to allow the deviations from the tendering process by the two companies and a Special Technical Oversight Committee (STOC) has submitted its report in this regard.
After the charges came up, the Ministry had asked the Italian Government to provide the name and relevant documents relating to the alleged involvement of the Brigadier in the ongoing process for acquisition of 197 helicopters for the Army.
The allegations have been levelled against the officer in a letter allegedly sent by an AgustaWestland official in India to his superiors in Italy saying the Brigadier was seeking USD 5 million for facilitating the deal in their favour.
The deal for procuring 197 light choppers has already been cancelled once in 2007 in the last stages even after the selection of Eurocopter.
The officer has denied the charges against him in a letter written by him.
Antony had recently told Parliament that “the proposal for acquisition of 197 Light Utility Helicopters is due for consideration of the DAC and the procurement procedure has been conducted in accordance with the Defence Procurement Procedure.”
He had also said that no “formal enquiry” has been instituted in the case. (PTI)
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