New Delhi: BJP spokesperson Prakash Javadekar’s letter to defence minister A K Antony seeking a probe into the AgustaWestland chopper deal in December last year had drawn no response while a parliamentary question was also blandly answered.
Almost two months before Antony finally ordered a CBI probe into the chopper deal, Javadekar had pointed to reports that Italian investigations had revealed a €51-million commission paid to a Switzerland-based consultant, Guido Ralph Haschke, to facilitate a deal with India.
Referring to reports in the media, Javadekar said the government did not appear to have begun any formal probe as it was awaiting further information from Italy and UK. “The government by using bilateral relations can seek related information on an urgent basis,” he said.
Stating that names of several Indians had come up in an inquiry report filed in a court in Naples, the MP also referred to taped conversations between Haschke and one Gerosa that he claimed threw light on the nexus to eliminate evidence.
In response to a parliamentary question, Antony had said that it had come to the notice of the ministry of defence through several reports that Italian prosecutors had begun a probe into alleged unethical dealings of Finmeccanica, the parent company of AgustaWestland.
Stating that the ministry of external affairs had taken up the matter with the governments of Italy and UK to access further details, the minister said, “In the absence of any specific information, the government has not started any formal probe in this regard by Indian agencies.”
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TIMES NEWS NETWORK
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