Another IAF ex-chief gets dragged into copter mess

Finmeccanica Says It Hosted Major, He Says It Was With Govt Nod
New Delhi: Lawyers for Finmeccanica, the Italian conglomerate in the middle of the VVIP helicopter scandal, said former IAF chief Air Chief Marshal Fali Homi Major had accepted their company’s hospitality during a trip to Italy in 2007. The claim comes months after the name of another IAF chief, Air Chief Marshal S P Tyagi, emerged in the scandal.

However, in the case of Major, the lawyers have not gone beyond the claim of providing hospitality at a time when IAF was in the process of selecting a helicopter to fly India’s VVIPs. In response to the claims, Major said he accepted Finmeccanica’s hospitality with the approval of the government and the Indian embassy in Rome.

“It was not for my personal requirement but for the delegation which was visiting the country,” said Major. He said he visited Finmeccanica in 2007 along with other delegation members, and the company hosted him for dinner. The former IAF chief said his programme had been approved by the government and drawn by officials including Indian diplomats in Rome. Major’s name emerged in the courts after former senior vice-president of AgustaWestland, Giacomo Saporano, on Wednesday claimed that Tyagi had accepted the firm’s hospitality in Italy in 2007. During the dates mentioned by Saporano, Major was the IAF chief.

Finmeccanica’s defence lawyers later clarified that Saporano got confused with the names and dates and it was Major who was in Italy on those dates.

Major was at the helm of IAF from April 2007 to May 2009 and Finmeccanica lawyers say Major knew more about technical specifications since he was a helicopter pilot. Most of the selection process for the VVIP helicopters was handled during the period Major was IAF chief. However, his name has not appeared in any of the court filings, or documents that have emerged in Italy and elsewhere during investigations.

Tyagi and his three cousins have been named as accused by the CBI in its ongoing criminal investigation in India. Documents recovered from the accused by Italian investigators allegedly show kickbacks to the Tyagi brothers, and some others.
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CBI starts fresh questioning of Tyagi brothers

AGUSTAWESTLAND COPTER DEAL
The interrogation follows allegations by ‘middleman’ Guido Haschke that he had paid money to them

NEW DELHI CBI has started fresh questioning of the cousins of former IAF chief SP Tyagi in the Rs 3,600 crore AgustaWestland VVIP helicopter deal. The interrogation is being done in light of claims by alleged middleman Guido Haschke that he had paid money to them.

Sources said the agency recently questioned Sanjeev alias Julie, Rajeev alias Docsa and Sandeep in connection with the claims made by Haschke.

“What I told CBI is that we have absolutely nothing to do with the deal and all supporting documents have been given to the CBI,” Sanjeev Tyagi told PTI when asked to comment on his examination. “We are cooperating with CBI and went to them every time we were called,” he said.

“The CAG report and Ministry of Defence release on the VVIP helicopter deal last year clearly refutes the charges levelled against us by CBI,” he added.

Sources said Haschke, who was questioned first by Defence Ministry officials and then by CBI, had told the probe agency that money was paid to the Tyagi brothers for the engineering works and meeting other administrative requirements in India.

Arrested in Switzerland in September last year and later extradited to Italy to face trial, Haschke has denied that he had ever met the former IAF Chief or handed over any money to him to clear the VVIP helicopter deal in favour of AgustaWestland.
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Coalgate: CBI’s chargesheet may not cite loss figure

New Delhi: While the Comptroller and Auditor General had claimed that alleged irregularities in coal block allocations caused a loss of Rs 1.86 lakh crore to the exchequer, the CBI is unlikely to mention any loss figure in its first set of chargesheets to be filed soon.

According to sources, the agency will restrict its chargesheets to explaining how there were misrepresentation of facts, tweaking of norms and undue favours shown to private companies while allocating captive coal blocks.

Agency officials said the Supreme Court would also be informed about the chargesheets on the next hearing on March 10 but there would be no mention of loss in the status report as well. A senior officer said, “We have not been asked so far to look into the losses.”

Officials said it was found that work was either not started in some of the captive coal blocks or mining was done for purposes other than mentioned in the applications.

Sources said the agency’s FIRs were in individual cases and losses in all coal block allocations between 2004 and 2009 and 1993 to 2004 and a wider probe may take time.

The agency has concluded investigations in six cases in the coal block allocation scam and chargesheets will be filed against companies including AMR Iron and Steel, JLD Yavatmal Energy, JAS Infrastructure, Navbharat Power and a few others, said sources. Officials said investigations were over and the CBI director was expected to give final approval on the chargesheets soon.

The chargesheets will be filed on allocations between 2006 and 2009, in which the agency had registered the first set of FIRs in 2012.

The CBI, in its next status report to the apex court, will also inform about close to 40 allocations since 1993 in which it did not find any irregularities, sources said.

CBI sources said their investigation into three private companies — AMR, JLD and JAS — and three others were complete after interrogation of several persons, collection of documents from the companies and various ministries. The agency had claimed in the past that the allocations were dubious and were done in connivance with government officials.

Choppergate: Tyagi kin quizzed again
New Delhi: Aiming to complete the probe soon and dwelling on the fresh evidence provided by European middleman Guido Hashcke, the CBI has reportedly started fresh questioning of former IAF chief S P Tyagi’s cousins in the Rs 3,600 crore AgustaWestland VVIP helicopter deal. Haschke had recently claimed in Italy that he had paid money to them. Sources said the agency had recently questioned Sanjeev alias Julie, Rajeev alias Docsa and Sandeep in connection with Haschke’s claims. TNN
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Neeraj Chauhan TNN
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अगस्ता वेस्टलैंड हेलिकॉप्टर घोटाला: इटली से मिले डॉक्युमेंट्स

भाषा, नई दिल्ली इटली के कानून मंत्रालय के अधिकारियों ने भारत के रक्षा मंत्रालय को 3,600 करोड़ रुपये के अगस्ता वेस्टलैंड हेलिकॉप्टर सौदे के खिलाफ कानूनी प्रक्रिया में उन दस्तावेजों का इस्तेमाल करने की इजाजत दे दी है जिनकी सप्लाई उन्होंने की थी।

सूत्रों ने कहा कि हेलीकाप्टर घोटाले की चल रही जांच में रक्षा मंत्रालय को इटली से कई अहम डॉक्युमेंट्स मिले हैं। ये दस्तावेज संयुक्त सचिव व अधिग्रहण प्रबंधक (वायु) एके बहल को हाल ही में सौंपे गए। उन्होंने कहा कि इटली के अधिकारियों ने रक्षा मंत्रालय को इन दस्तावेजों का इस्तेमाल कानूनी प्रक्रिया में करने की इजाजत दे दी है। इस बारे में इजाजत मिलान में मामले की अंतिम सुनवाई के दौरान दी गई।
साभार
एजेंसियां | Dec 2, 2013, 10.03PM IST
http://navbharattimes.indiatimes.com/india/national-india/agustawestland-deal-defence-ministry-gets-important-documents-from-italy/articleshow/26752242.cms

Agusta Westland Chopper SCAM: CBI seeks info from Italy, Mauritius, Tunisia

CBI has sent judicial requests to Italy, Mauritius and Tunisia seeking details of financial transactions of the companies named in the Rs 3600-crore VVIP helicopter scam.

CBI sources said the agency has despatched Letters Rogatory for details of financial transactions, meetings of alleged middlemen and their interests in Indian and Tunisian companies, among others.

The top executives of Italian firm Finmeccanica and its United Kingdom-based subsidiary AgustaWestland are facing trial in Italy for alleged corruption in supply of 12 VVIP helicopters to India.

The Rs 3600-crore contract is also under probe of Indian agencies for alleged kickbacks paid to Indian officials, including former IAF chief S P Tyagi, to clinch it.

The alleged bribes were routed through a company with subsidiaries in Tunisia and Mauritius, the sources said.

Tyagi has denied allegations of any kickbacks.

Giuseppe Orsi and Bruno Spagnolini, former and current Chief Executives of AgustaWestland respectively, are facing trial in Italy for alleged corruption.

Orsi was heading AgustaWestland when the deal was signed in 2010 and is now the Chief Executive Officer of parent company Finmeccanica.

The statements of both these top executives are important for CBI for finalising its charges which would be levelled in the charge sheet, the sources said.

India has become a civil party in the ongoing trial in Italy which helped it in getting court documents submitted by Italian prosecutors in connection with the case.
Courtesy:
By PTI - NEW DELHI
Published: 21st November 2013 08:05 PM
http://newindianexpress.com/nation/Chopper-scam-CBI-seeks-info-from-Italy-Mauritius-Tunisia/2013/11/21/article1903667.ece

Agusta Westland Chopper SCAM: Chopper trial opens in Italy, defence for A K Antony as witness

A lawyer for Bruno Spagnolini, the former chief executive of AgustaWestland, asked an Italian court Wednesday that India's Defence Minister A K Antony be called in as witness, as trial began in the alleged corruption in the sale of 12 helicopters to the Indian government.

Spagnolini and Giuseppe Orsi, former head of the Italian defence group Finmeccanica of which AgustaWestland is a part, have been accused of paying bribes to intermediaries to secure the sale of the helicopters in a 560 million euro ($ 749 million) deal in 2010.

The arrest warrant for Orsi and Spagnolini said that the Indian tender was changed to deliberately favour the Italian firm. The scandal has raised the prospect that Finmeccanica could be blacklisted in India, the world's largest arms importer and an important growth market for the state-controlled company.

Spagnolini's lawyer, Massimo Bassi, also asked the court that former Air Force chief Air Chief Marshal (retd) S P Tyagi be called. The court, which decided to let India's Ministry of Defence and Italy's tax agency seek damages, said the next hearing will be held on July 11. A legal source told Reuters he expected a long trial.

Finmeccanica and Orsi, who left the company a few days after his arrest on February 12, deny any wrongdoing. Spagnolini, who also stepped down, also denies any responsibility in the matter.

During a break in the hearing on Wednesday Orsi's lawyer Ennio Amodio said: "We will demonstrate that the tender in India was regularly carried out and nothing illegal was done in that country." Neither Orsi nor Spagnolini were in court. India has frozen payments for the helicopters pending an inquiry by the CBI into AgustaWestland, and has said it is seeking to cancel the deal.
Courtesy:
Reuters : Busto Arsizio, Thu Jun 20 2013, 08:45 hrs Small Large Print
http://www.indianexpress.com/news/chopper-trial-opens-in-italy-defence-for-a-k-antony-as-witness/1131264/

चॉपर घोटाला : इटली जाएंगे सीबीआई अफसर

नई दिल्ली॥ 362 करोड़ रुपये के हेलिकॉप्टर रिश्वत केस में इटली में जारी मुकदमे की सुनवाई में शामिल होने के लिए सीबीआई का एक सीनियर अफसर भी मिलान (इटली) जाएगा। यह अफसर सुनवाई के दौरान रक्षा मंत्रालय की टीम की मदद करेगा। इस घोटाले में पूर्व एयर चीफ मार्शल एस.पी. त्यागी भी अभियुक्त हैं।

वायु सेना को 12 हेलिकॉप्टर की सप्लाई में 3600 करोड़ रुपये की डील में भारत में 362 करोड़ रुपये की रिश्वत देने के आरोप में दो कंपनियों के खिलाफ तहकीकात के बाद इटली के जांचकर्ताओं ने रिपोर्ट कोर्ट में दायर कर दी है। अब 19 जून से मिलान में मुकदमे की सुनवाई शुरू हो रही है। इसकी सुनवाई के लिए रक्षा मंत्रालय के अफसरों की टीम मिलान जा रही है।

भारत में इस डील में रिश्वत के आरोपों की जांच सीबीआई कर रही है। इसलिए रक्षा मंत्रालय के अधिकारी सीबीआई के अफसर को भी साथ ले जा रहे हैं। सीबीआई के डायरेक्टर इस अफसर का नाम रक्षा मंत्रालय को सूचित करेंगे।

इटली में ब्रिटेन की कंपनी 'ऑगस्टा वेस्टलैंड' और इटालियन कंपनी 'फिनमेक्कानिका' के सीनियर अफसरों पर केस चलाया जा रहा है। इस केस में सीबीआई की एफआईआर के मुताबिक, इन दोनों कंपनियों की ओर से बिचौलिये गाइडो हैश्के ने भारत में रिश्वत देकर यह हेलिकॉप्टर डील कराई।

हैश्के ने ट्यूनीशिया में अपनी कंपनी 'गोर्डियन सर्विसेज'की ओर से हैलीकॉप्टर सप्लाई करने वाली इन कंपनियों से कन्सलटेंसी डील की थी। हैश्के ने त्यागी के रिश्तेदारों की कंपनी से भी कंसल्टेंसी डील की थी। हैश्के ने ही यूरो में रिश्वत की रकम त्यागी की कंपनी को ट्रांसफर की थी।
साभार
Jun 18, 2013, प्रमुख संवाददाता
http://navbharattimes.indiatimes.com/india/national-india/chopper-scam-cbi-officer-said-italy/articleshow/20635818.cms

Agusta Westland Chopper SCAM: ED probing money trail in copter scam

New Delhi: The Delhi unit of the Enforcement Directorate has already begun the trail of alleged payoffs received by some Indian entities in the defence deal in which Italian company AgustaWestland is suspected to have paid more than Rs 350 crore to middlemen.

The Rs 3,500-crore deal made in 2010 was for the supply of 12 choppers to be used by Indian VVIPs. The alleged payoffs to middlemen are believed to be in the range of 10%-15% of the total deal amount.

On Tuesday, the Italian authorities, who were probing the alleged payoffs for over a year, arrested the head of AgustaWestland in Milan on charges of paying bribes to middlemen, who helped in pushing through the deal in India. Sources said the ED had started a discreet probe into the alleged payoffs sometime ago, and now after the government has asked the CBI to conduct an inquiry; the ED may join the probe formally.

This was the second big defence deal in which the ED has been trailing alleged payoffs. Earlier, the agency had been asked by the government to investigate the alleged payoffs received by arms-dealer Abhishek Verma. In Verma’s case, his estranged business partner, American attorney C Edmond Allen, had written to defence minister A K Antony last year, giving details of alleged payoffs received by Verma in some past defence deals amounting to over $400 million. Verma, according to Allen, had invested a part of this payment, amounting to $530,000, in a US company called Ganton. This commission, according to him, had come from Swiss firm Rheinmetall Air Defence (RAD).

Alot of documents are available in Verma’s case as Allen has offered to turn approver. But in the Italian case, the government says authorities in Milan have refused to share any details about the Indian recipients of the alleged payoffs.
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Agusta Westland Chopper SCAM: India accepts what Obama can’t afford

3 Of 12 Copters Worth 3,546cr Already In Elite IAF Squad
New Delhi: US president Barack Obama had found a variant of the AW-101 helicopters too exorbitant to pass muster in 2009. But the Indian government had no such qualms while inking the Rs 3,546-crore deal for 12 plush AW-101 helicopters just a year later in 2010.

The American ‘‘Marine One’’, the call sign of the US Marine Corps helicopter which ferries the President of the USA, would of course have been much more hightech and ‘‘souped-up’’ helicopter compared to the Indian variant.

Obama had shot down the Marine One project, under which the US Navy was to have acquired 28 helicopters, after cost escalations had taken the overall cost to over $13 billion in June 2009, as per estimates.

Money, instead, was invested to upgrade the existing US presidential copter fleet. Last heard, another AW-101 variant was again in contention to bag the US Navy’s latest programme to develop the ‘‘Marine One Presidential Helicopter’’.

Three of the 12 AW-101 choppers contracted by India — eight in VVIP configuration and four in non-VVIP – have already been inducted in the IAF’s elite Communication Squadron, which ferries around the President, PM and other VVIPs, at the Palam airbase. They are slated to replace the ageing Russian-origin Mi-8s and Mi-17s being currently used to fly VVIPs within the country.

Indian VVIPs have been getting plush new aircraft and helicopters to travel in style and security over the last decade. The AW-101s, for instance, have robust self-defence systems like missileapproach warners, chaff and flare dispensers and directed infra-red electronic counter-measures to protect VVIPs on board. In the VVIP configuration, they ferry only 10 passengers instead of the usual 40.

Another concern of the Special Protection Group (SPG), which provides proximate security to the PM, was that the helicopters have ‘‘a high tail boom’’ to allow cars to come right next to the rear exit staircase without ‘‘exposing’’ VVIPs to a threat from anyone in the vicinity.

Earlier, India had inducted five mid-sized Embraer 135BJ Legacy jets, under a Rs 727-crore deal in September 2003, and three Business Boeing Jets (BBJs), under a Rs 937-crore contract in October 2005, for the travel of VVIPs.

The BBJs also have advanced self-protection suites to guard against missiles and other threats. While the Legacy jets replaced old HS-748 Avros with the Communication Squadron, the BBJs substituted the two 737-200 aircraft which had been bought in 1983.

GUNS & GRAFT
JEEP SCANDAL
One of the first scandals to hit independent India. In 1948 Indian high commissioner in Britain V K Krishna Menon was accused of bypassing procurement protocols to sign a deal worth Rs 80 lakh to buy 155 jeeps from UK. Many also alleged they were second hand jeeps. Government did not permit a judicial inquiry. Menon went on to become India’s defence minister.

BOFORS SCANDAL
The most infamous of all defence scandals the country has seen. Allegations emerged in the late 80s that kickbacks were received in the purchase of Bofors guns from Sweden. Several high profile individuals figured among the accused, probe went on for many years and finally ended in a whimper. However, politically, it brought down the fortunes of Rajiv Gandhi

HDW SCANDAL
Allegations emerged in 1987 that German defence firm has paid a commission for the purchase of submarines by India, signed in early 80s. Former navy chief and one of the architects of 1971 war, Admiral SM Nanda, was among those raided. The CBI closed its probe, failing to find any proof of bribes being paid.

TEHELKA TAPES
Two reporters who went around as representatives of a fake defence firm recorded key political leaders, military officers and babus talking in detail about how bribery is paid in defence deals. Defence minister George Fernandes had to quit after his party’s treasurer boasted about collecting bribes along with Jaya Jaitley from arms dealers. Many specific evidence emerged of paybacks in purchase of Barak missiles from Israel etc. No major breakthrough by CBI till date.

ABHISHEK VERMA SCANDAL
The son of former MP is in jail, and his wife are accused of stealing defence secrets and accepting bribes from defence firms. Investigations are continuing into the affairs. Verma may have also had a role in the VVIP helicopter deal

SUDIPTO GHOSH SCANDAL
In 2009 CBI arrested ex-chief of Ordnance Factory Board, Sudipta Ghosh and several of his associates for fixing contracts of OFB. After CBI found evidence of bribery, the government in March 2012 blacklisted six companies for 10 years — Singapore Technologies, Israeli Military Industries, Germany’s Rheinmetall Air Defence, Russian firm Corporation Defence, Indian firms T S Kisan & Company and R K Machine Tool
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Agusta Westland Chopper SCAM: Shadowy figures across globe on agencies’ radar

New Delhi: The CBI and foreign agencies probing kickbacks in the sale of VVIP helicopters to India in 2010 will be looking at several controversial and mysterious individuals based in India, Europe and elsewhere for their alleged involvement in pushing the deal through.

Between them, they may have been paid €51 million (approx Rs 350 crore) by AgustaWestland or its parent firm Finmeccanica as kickbacks, and much of that could have found its way back into the Italian political establishment. Probably a portion of the payment may have even reached Indian political contacts. The spectre of payouts to Indian politicians, or those operating on their behalf, is quite high because of the individuals who are allegedly involved in the deal, and their close contacts with Indian politicians.

Three of the alleged middlemen hold the key to unravelling the details of the kickbacks: Switzerland-based Guido Haschke, who has been operating in the Indian market for years and used to be a director on the board of real estate firm Emaar MGF in the past. Carlo Gerosa is a business partner of Haschke. Christian Michel is a UK resident and has very powerful political connections in India.

Names of several Indians too have emerged in the investigations, but no concrete information is available.

According to transcripts, of the €51 million kickbacks, almost €30 million may have been paid to Michel, a confidante of Finmeccanica chief executive and chairman Giuseppe Orsi, who was arrested in Italy on Tuesday.

Names figuring in the taped conversation include Gautam Khaitan, a Delhi-based lawyer and a business partner of Haschke, Sanjeev Kumar Tyagi, a cousin of former air force chief Air Chief Marshal S P Tyagi, and Chandigarhbased firm Aeromatrix. The conversation shows that the kickbacks may have been routed via Tunisia and Mauritius.

One recorded conversation shows that about 15 million euros of this kickback may have been routed back into India.

Records presented in Italian courts also show that Paolo Girasole, who used to head Finmeccanica’s operations in India, was also paid some of the kickbacks.

MEN UNDER INVESTIGATION
CHRISTIAN MICHEL
Probably the go-between among some key Indian contacts, the CEO of Finmeccanica and others. He is believed to have handled 30 million euros of the kickbacks. His father Wolfgang Richard Max Michel too had deep Indian connections. Michel is also believed to have close connections with several Indian politicians. Faces an arrest warrant in Switzerland, and is presently based in Dubai

GUIDO HASCHKE AND CARLO GEROSA
Haschke, who holds Italian and US passports, is based in Switzerland. He has been very active in India for many years, and used to be a director of Emaar MGF. He was briefly arrested by Swiss authorities in connection with the ongoing investigations. Carlo Gerosa is his business partner. A large part of the secretly recorded conversations is between the two, and discusses in detail the VVIP helicopter deal with India

SANJEEV KUMAR TYAGI
A cousin of former IAF chief Air Chief Marshal S P Tyagi, he is known to be a flashy operator who lives in a farm house and operates out of New Delhi

GAUTAM KHAITAN
A Delhi-based lawyer who seemed to have been a legal advisor to Haschke and Gerosa. His name repeatedly figures in the conversations. He and Haschke were involved in promoting Aeromatrix, a Chandigarh-based firm which figures in the investigations.
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Agusta Westland Chopper SCAM: Bribe charges hit Italian copter deal

350cr Kickback Suspected In 3,546cr Purchase CEO Of Supplier Firm Arrested
Defence Ministry Forced To Order CBI Investigation
New Delhi: A couple of arrests in Italy sent ripples down the corridors of power in South Block here on Tuesday, forcing the government to order a CBI probe into whether bribes influenced the purchase of 12 swanky VVIP helicopters from Italian aerospace and defence giant Finmeccanica to ferry the President, the PM and other Indian dignitaries.

The dramatic developments came as a setback to the defence ministry which inked the Rs 3,546-crore contract for the 12 three-engine AW-101 helicopters in February 2010, and had earlier repeatedly refused to order a probe into the deal “in the absence of any specific information’’ despite the allegations of huge kickbacks swirling around for over a year.

But on Tuesday, with yet another defence scandal threatening to blow up in the face of the UPA government in the run-up to the 2014 general elections, defence minister A K Antony was constrained to order the CBI probe. This came after Italian authorities arrested Finmeccanica chief executive Giuseppe Orsi in Milan. Three others, including the head of the Italian major’s UK-based unit AgustaWestland, Bruno Spagnolini, were also placed under house arrest by an Italian magistrate.

Although connected to the alleged payment of 51 million euros by AgustaWestland to a Switzerland-based middleman to swing the Indian VVIP chopper deal, the arrests come as part of the wider ongoing judicial investigation in Italy into financial malpractices as well as political kickbacks and bribes by some major Italian industrial giants to bag contracts.

The deal was signed because of a forceful push by the Special Protection Group (SPG), the elite corps which provides proximate security to the Prime Minister, and the IAF, which wanted to replace its ageing Russian-origin VVIP helicopters, despite the defence ministry’s initial wariness and stiff competition from Americans.

The AW-101 helicopters, armed with self-defence systems like missile-approach warners, chaff and flare dispensers and directed infra-red electronic counter-measures to protect the VVIPs on board, were pitted against the American Sikorsky’s S-92 Superhawks during extensive field trials held in India in 2008.

The US firm had later claimed the trials were unfairly biased against it, but India had gone ahead with the AW-101 contract.

UPA GOVT FLIES INTO YET ANOTHER SCANDAL
THE DEAL | On Feb 8, 2010, the defence ministry signed a 3,546cr deal to buy a dozen helicopters for Indian VVIPs. UK-based AgustaWestland, subsidiary of Italian military consortium Finmeccanica, was to supply AW101 helicopters
STATUS | 3 of these helicopters have arrived in India. Three more coming by May-June. Entire fleet to be in place by March 2014
USERS | President, PM, V-P, and other top dignitaries WHO CLEARED IT | Cabinet Committee on Security headed by PM Manmohan Singh. It was vetted by defence ministry under A K Antony and finance ministry under Pranab Mukherjee

THE ALLEGATION
Italian investigators suspect a kickback of up to 51 million euros (about 350cr). Of this, up to 30 million euros may have been routed through Christian Michel, a UK-based alleged middleman, back to Italy for payments to politicians and others

UNDER SCANNER 
Christian Michel and Swiss citizen Guido Haschke suspected to be key middlemen. The names of lawyer Gautam Khaitan, Sanjeev Tyagi (cousin of a former IAF chief), and a firm, Aeromatrix, also allegedly figure in taped conversations Too costly for US, India buys a dozen

In 2009, US President Barack Obama turned down a variant of the AW-101 as it was very expensive and chose to upgrade the existing fleet rather than buy 28 copters as planned. India, however, agreed to buy 12 AW-101 helicopters a year later for Rs 3,546 crore.

Three of the 12 choppers have already been inducted into the IAF’s elite Communication Squadron, which ferries around the President, Prime Minister and other VVIPs, at the Palam airbase. India apparently opted for the copter due to its advanced self-defence systems. AW didn’t give up hope in the US though. Last heard, another AW-101 variant was again in contention to bag the US Navy’s latest programme to develop the Marine One Presidential Helicopter.

Bribery charges may hit other defence deals
New Delhi:Defence minister A K Antony after the AW-101 deal, which has come under glare, had publicly stated, “SPG and IAF repeatedly told us the helicopters were urgently required because of the changing security scenario...the finance ministry (then headed by Pranab Mukherjee) also agreed later. The Cabinet Committee on Security then took a considered decision.’’

But later it had also emerged that some of the technical parameters in the VVIP helicopter contract had been tweaked, which could have helped the AW-101 to qualify for the project. For instance, the earlier requirement for the choppers to be able to fly at an altitude of 6,000 metres was later reduced to 4,500 metres. As it happened, the Sikorsky chopper could not meet even this requirement, but the AW-101 sailed through.

The suspicion of bribery in an important defence deal could not have come at a worse time for a government which has struggled to fend off the perception of a spike in corruption under its charge. It can further hinder the conclusion of crucial, already much-delayed, defence acquisitions as well as raise doubts about the oft-repeated claims of the ministry of defence about the effective ban in place against middlemen and arms dealers.

MoD officials here claimed they were “still clueless” about the ongoing Italian probe. “We have not received any specific input from the Italian and UK governments about the allegations despite requests. Let the facts come out through the CBI investigation…We will take action,” said a senior official. The external affairs ministry spokesperson added, “We had asked the government of Italy through our mission in Rome for details of the investigation but were told that it is a judicial process and the government of Italy is unable to share any information. That remains the position even today.”

MoD officials said the contract as well as the “integrity pact” inked with AgustaWestland has the “standard” anti-graft penalties for the use of undue influence as well as against the employment of agents or payment of any commission. “Any breach of the provisions entitles MoD to cancel the contract as well as other dealings with the company. Moreover, imposition of penal damages and forfeiture of bank guarantees, as also criminal charges, can come into play if the allegations are proved,” said the official.

The controversy will have a bearing on another helicopter contract to be discussed by the Antonyled Defence Acquisitions Council on Wednesday. This contract is for the joint Army-IAF procurement case of 197 new light-utility helicopters for over Rs 3,000 crore, with the Russian Kamov Ka-226T pitted against Eurocopter AS 550 C3 Fennec.
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Agusta Westland Chopper SCAM: CEO of helicopter firm arrested, CBI to probe

The Defence ministry Tuesday ordered a CBI probe into corruption allegations in the Rs 3,546 crore deal to procure VVIP helicopters for the Indian Air Force after the CEO of the Italian firm supplying them was arrested for his suspected role in arranging bribes to bag the contract.

Giuseppe Orsi, CEO of Finmeccanica group, was arrested by Italian authorities Tuesday morning and arrest warrants were also issued for the two Switzerland-based middlemen who allegedly paid bribes in India — Italian nationals Guido Haschke and Carlo Gerosa. Britain-based consultant Christian Michel has also been named in the chargesheet.

Orsi was arrested for his alleged role in arranging bribes amounting to 51 million euros to sell 12 AW 101 choppers to the IAF. The Indian Express was the first to report the scandal and had detailed the alleged nexus of middlemen involved in the deal in a series of reports last year.

Hours after the arrests, the Defence ministry issued a detailed statement which said that it had tried to get information about the probe from Italy and Britain — the contract was signed with AgustaWestland, UK —but had been unsuccessful. The ministry decided to ask the CBI to take over the probe due to the arrests.

"Since no specific input has been received so far from the two governments, MoD has decided to refer the case to CBI for inquiry," the statement said. "The contract signed with AgustaWestland includes specific contractual provisions against bribery and the use of undue influence as well as an Integrity Pact."

With the CBI taking over the case, the focus is expected to turn on the Indians named in the Italian probe for their alleged role in the kickbacks. Besides the two Italian middlemen, the preliminary report filed by Italian prosecutors had named an Indian businessman, Sanjeev `Julie' Tyagi, as an accused in the case.

The arrest is seen as a major blow for Finmeccanica, the parent company of AgustaWestland, that has repeatedly denied that any bribes were paid. After Orsi's arrest, the company said its "operating activities and ongoing projects will continue as usual".

"In addition, Finmeccanica expresses support for its chairman and CEO, with the hope that clarity is established quickly, whilst reaffirming its confidence in the judges," the company said in a statement. Orsi, who was heading AgustaWestland when the deal was signed in 2010, is now the CEO of the parent Finmeccanica.

While a probe has been ordered and the Italian firm is in danger of being blacklisted if its officials are found guilty of violating the stringent anti-corruption laws, sources said it is still too early to say that the deal will be cancelled. IAF officials said that out of the 12 VVIP choppers, three have already arrived in India and are undergoing flight tests.

Three more choppers are expected by the middle of this year, followed by the rest. As of now, the order has not been terminated, with the Indian government likely to wait for a CBI report before taking a decision.

As reported by The Indian Express, the Italian probe is working on the lines that AgustaWestland was favoured by the IAF for the mega contract after bribes were allegedly paid to first alter the technical requirements and then to swing the contract in its favour.

The technical requirements of the contract were changed drastically before September 2006 when the tenders were floated. While the original requirements held that the choppers should be able to attain an altitude of 6,000 m, this was reduced to 4,500 m before floating tenders.

This change also enabled AgustaWestland to enter the competition as it did not qualify earlier due to the 6,000 m altitude requirement.

AN EXPRESS STORY

24 FEB '12 The first report: 'Indian helicopter deal sparks corruption row in Italy'. Next day, Defence ministry sought report from Indian mission in Italy

25 APR The alleged bribe: 'India helicopter deal: Italy probes Euro 51 mn payoff'

28 APR Key middleman Guido Haschke's India connection: 'Italian under probe was active in India defence sector'

23 OCT The Express reports role and connections of UK-based Christian Michel, co-accused in the case

25 OCT The Express begins series of reports tracking the Italian investigation: role of Finmeccanica's India head; Indian middlemen, including a former IAF chief's kin; the middlemen's taped conversations

NOV 1 Key disclosure: probe has found India tweaked technical requirements of contract to get AgustaWestland into race. On Dec 3, The Express reported that a govt probe had established the tweak
Courtesy:
Manu Pubby : New Delhi, Wed Feb 13 2013, 03:42 hrs
http://www.indianexpress.com/news/ceo-of-helicopter-firm-arrested-cbi-to-probe/1073419/0

Agusta Westland Chopper SCAM: India named affected party, may get evidence from Italy

With India being named as an affected party by Italian prosecutors who have moved court for a fast track trial in the VVIP chopper deal kickbacks scandal, the CBI is likely to soon get hold of key evidence that Italian investigators have used to allege that bribes worth 51 million euros were paid to facilitate the contract.

Italian prosecutors, who have been investigating the case since late 2011, moved the court on Tuesday for an immediate trial of former CEO of Finmeccanica Giuseppe Orsi, who has emerged as the key accused in the bribery scandal.

It is learnt that the Indian government has been listed as an affected party in the case by the prosecutors and if the court agrees to this, several thousand pages of crucial evidence could be made available to India, as per Italian law.

The Indian embassy in Rome would be the nodal agency with which the information would be shared. As per Italian law, all affected parties, including the accused, have to be given access to the investigation material before the trial commences.

It is also believed that the fast track trial that has been demanded by the prosecutors, doing away with the need for a preliminary hearing into the case, indicates that a strong case exists against both Orsi and Bruno Spagnolini, who was till recently the CEO of AgustaWestland. Both have been accused of facilitating the generation of bribes in the Rs 3,546-crore deal with India for 12 VVIP helicopters that was inked in 2010.

Once the trial starts in a few days, the information will be made available to all the parties concerned, giving the CBI more evidence to tie up its own case that has been registered in the matter. The CBI has named former Air Chief SP Tyagi among others as key accused in facilitating the contract for AgustaWestland by tweaking technical requirements. The bank accounts of all Indian individuals and companies named in a CBI FIR were recently frozen by investigators.

In its reaction to the development, AgustaWestland said that it is "unable to comment directly on the ongoing investigation" but stressed that "none of the allegations have yet been tested in court".

The company also issued a statement that it has formally sought "bilateral discussions with the Ministry of Defence" on the VVIP chopper deal, saying that such a discussion is a "legal obligation under the contract". The company said that it is yet to get any response.
Courtesy:
Manu Pubby : New Delhi, Thu May 02 2013, 00:53 hrs
http://www.indianexpress.com/news/india-named-affected-party-may-get-evidence-from-italy/1110293/0

Agusta Westland Chopper SCAM: CAG finalizes audit report

New Delhi: Even before the UPA government could put out the fire over its alleged interference in the Coalgate investigation, the Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) has come out with another report, scrutinizing the controversial Rs 3,500 crore AgustaWestland VVIP chopper deal.

Sources said CAG Vinod Rai on Monday signed the final audit report on the purchase of 12 VVIP choppers from AgustaWestland, the UK-based subsidiary of Italian conglomerate Finmeccanica, and sent it to the President with a copy to the defence ministry for its tabling in the ongoing budget session. The scrutiny of the deal is part of CAG’s compliance audit of the Indian Air Force till 2012.

Sources said the federal auditor has looked into all allegations of irregularities in the deal in which an independent investigation in Italy alleged that payoffs of more than Rs 350 crore were made to some middlemen, including Indians.
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Agusta Westland Chopper SCAM: Bank accounts of ex-IAF chief Tyagi, others frozen

New Delhi:The CBI has frozen bank accounts of former IAF chief S P Tyagi and other Indians named as accused for allegedly receiving kickbacks in the Rs 3,600 crore VVIP helicopter deal. Sources said on Tuesday that “certain bank accounts of all the Indian accused” named in the FIR had been frozen.

Bank accounts of Indian companies named in the alleged scam — Aeromatrix Info Solutions Pvt Ltd and IDS Infotech — have already been frozen by the agency.

Sources said bank accounts of Tyagi’s cousins — Sanjeev alias Julie, Rajeev alias Docsa and Sandeep — were frozen as part of the investigation. Other Indians named in the FIR, whose accounts were frozen, include former Union minister Santosh Bagrodia’s brother Satish Bagrodia, who is also chairman of IDS Infotech, the company’s managing director Pratap Aggarwal, Aeromatrix CEO Praveen Bakshi and legal advisor Gautam Khaitan, sources said.

CBI has booked all the accused under provisions of the IPC relating to cheating and criminal conspiracy and the Prevention of Corruption Act. Tyagi is the first IAF chief to be named in a corruption or criminal case by the CBI.

The agency has alleged that during his tenure as IAF chief, Tyagi, and “with his approval” the IAF, “conceded to reduce the service ceiling for VVIP helicopters from 6,000 metres to 4,500 metres”.

“Haschke Guido and Gerosa Carlo (middlemen) managed to send €5.6 million through Mohali-based IDS Infotech and Chandigarh-based Aeromatrix Info Solutions Pvt Ltd to India and kept the remaining amount, out of about €24.30 million received from AgustaWestland, with themselves in the account of IDS Tunisia,” the FIR said.
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Agusta Westland Chopper SCAM: What is the AugustaWestland case

AugustaWestland is an Anglo-Italian multinational helicopter design manufacturing comapany and wholly owned by Finmeccania.

The entire scam opened up after the Finmeccania CEO Guiseppe Orsi was arrested by the Italian police as a part of a bribery probe related to the sale of the 12 VIP helicopters to India in 2010.

Orsi was under investigation for the same ever since 2011 when he left Finmeccanica's helicopter unit AgustaWestland in order to become chief executive of the company.

He is accused to have connection with a Rs3,600 crore bribe paid to secure the helicopter contract with India the same year.

2011 was also the time when the Indian government finally woke up to kickstart a probe into the same case, its first step being getting in touch with the Italian government to get a report about the entire scandal. But all was in vain as the Italian authorities refused to cooperate in view of the case being under a judicial probe.

Now, two days after Orsi's arrest, the Indian defence ministry has requested a detailed CBI report into the entire scam.

Defence minister AK Antony has refused comment on the alleged scam until the CBI report is out, even as he has ensured that the guilty will be severely punished.

Antony said he has already blacklisted six companies and would not hesitate "no matter how big the companies are".

Meanwhile, the scam report brought the names of Juli Tyagi, Docsa and Sandeep Tyagi to the forefront linking them as the cousins of former air chief SP Tyagi.

The Italian Investigators name SP Tyagi as a part of a scam and accuse him of tweaking the requirements of the deal. Tyagi has rubbished the charges, stating that the deal was signed in 2010 when he had retired in 2007.

Tyagi however mentioned that he was a part of the deal when it was proposed in 2003, but not after he retired.
Courtesy: 
Published: Wednesday, Feb 13, 2013, 12:50 IST
By Hansika Subramanian | Place: Mumbai | Agency: DNA
http://www.dnaindia.com/india/report_what-is-the-augustawestland-case_1799505

Agusta Westland Chopper SCAM: Govt ignored BJP leader’s request for probe in Dec

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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Agusta Westland Chopper SCAM: Chopper scam foils Cong bid to shed ‘corrupt’ tag

Party Worried As Charges Coincide With Rahul’s RIse
New Delhi: The VVIP helicopter scam threatens to undo the Congress’s efforts to turn the public gaze away from a string of scandals marring UPA’s second term in office by a renewed focus on governance and leadership ahead of the 2014 elections.

Worry lines were back in evidence with allegations of kickbacks from an Italian firm snowballing and the Congress defending the government by relying on defence minister A K Antony’s “Mr Clean” image and the promptness with which a CBI inquiry has been ordered close on the heels of the arrests in Italy.

The Congress’s reactions, betraying a gnawing worry that the scam could be a setback to the sense of purpose generated by the party’s brainstorming at Jaipur last month that saw Rahul Gandhi take charge as vice-president with another sapping corruption debate looming ahead of Parliament’s Budget session.

The sustained civil society and the Opposition campaign on corruption exposes had paralyzed the Manmohan Singh government and extracted a heavy political cost. It is only recently that the PMO has made concerted efforts to break the debilitating policy logjam by resolving inter ministerial battles over clearances and mandates.

Post-Jaipur, there was a bid to junk the “old ways” of denial and inaction with the Congress left with little more than a year to win back voters who might be turning against the party. The ‘Jaipur chintan’ crystallized the agenda to turn the page.

Now, the concern is that the energizing effect of Rahul’s elevation may again lose momentum as the Centre gets ready for another slugfest with the Opposition.

The graft allegation can shadow the decisiveness the government is looking to project in the context of the recent hanging of Parliament attack convict Afzal Guru that was a bid to strip rival BJP of an issue. Insiders fear the chopper row can mar the approaching Parliament session, making it more difficult for finance minister P Chidambaram to lift the gloom with a Budget that was expected to counter the blues.

Things had looked like falling in place for Congress after it successfully blunted saffron aggression on corruption following exposes on BJP chief Nitin Gadkari’s shady business deals. With news coverage moving from scams to saffron bickering, Congress seized the opportunity by effecting a generational change and outlining its future agenda in Jaipur.

In sorry contrast, the Congress on Wednesday appeared to be in firefighting mode again. Party spokesman P C Chacko accused the BJP of resurrecting the corruption bogey to disrupt Parliament despite the Centre having swung into action a year ago when reports of irregularities first surfaced.

“The BJP has nothing in its agenda to oppose the government. So, it is creating the smokescreen of corruption in the helicopter deal (that was initiated by the NDA),” he said, adding, “We want to pin down the BJP propaganda on corruption. So we ordered the CBI inquiry.”

That graft could be a spanner in the works for a larger ‘secular’ consolidation over the BJP’s newfound love for Hindutva in the context of charges of “saffron terror” leveled by home minister Sushilkumar Shinde. The Left bloc launched a strong attack on UPA and demanded the chopper deal be put on hold — areversal of fortunes after Rahul Gandhi on Tuesday threatened to throw the “communists” out of India during the Tripura poll campaign.

That helicopter allegations have followed the leaked telephonic conversation alleging collusion between the public prosecutor and a top corporate accused in the 2G scam, compounding the Congress woes on graft front.
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Agusta Westland Chopper SCAM: CBI starts probe into 3,600-cr VVIP helicopter scandal

New Delhi: The CBI on Wednesday received a formal complaint from the government in the Rs 3,600-crore VVIP helicopter scandal and some documents including primary reports, letters and clippings of Italian media stories. Sources said the agency is likely to register a preliminary enquiry (PE) on Thursday.

The CBI has asked the defence ministry to provide all relevant documents of the deal, mode of payment and list of people in IAF and the ministry who handled the deal.

After registering the inquiry, the CBI will send a ‘source query’ to Italy seeking investigating report, interrogation report of Finmeccanica CEO Giuseppe Orsi and details of the company.

The agency has approached the Indian mission in Italy to provide documents related to the investigation which is in public domain in case they do not succeed in procuring material through official channels, sources said.

The sources added that the CBI is trying to get the report filed by public prosecutor Eugenio Fusco on the basis of which Orsi was arrested as it could help in zeroing in on Indians who could have been alleged beneficiaries of the bribes.

In February 2010, India had inked the Rs 3,600-crore deal to acquire 12 three-engine AW-101 helicopters from AgustaWestland for IAF’s elite communication squadron, which ferries the President, PM and other VVIPs. The deal came under the scanner of Italian agencies after allegations of kickbacks surfaced.

It is alleged that Orsi, who was CEO of the company when the deal was struck, was involved in giving bribes. Around Rs 362 crore, about 10% of the deal, were allegedly given as bribes to ensure that the company clinched the contract.
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Neeraj Chauhan TNN
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Agusta Westland Chopper SCAM: Ex-NSA tried to avoid single-vendor situation

New Delhi: Was it a bid to prevent a scandal almost a decade ago which has now led to the present VVIP helicopter scam? It was actually the late Brajesh Mishra, the then national security advisor and principal secretary to PM Atal Behari Vajpayee, who in 2003 had directed the MoD and IAF to change the technical specifications for the acquisition of the 12 VVIP helicopters.

“I am concerned that the framing of the mandatory requirements for the new helicopters has effectively led us into a single-vendor situation,’’ Mishra, in his letter of December 22, 2003, to the then IAF chief Air Chief Marshal S Krishnaswamy had said.

“It is unfortunate that neither the PMO nor the Special Protection Group (which provides proximate security to the PM) was consulted while framing these mandatory requirements. I suggest you and the defence secretary may jointly review this matter to draw up realistic requirements satisfying operational, security and convenience requirements for VVIPs,’’ it added.

Top defence ministry sources say this need to avoid a “single-vendor” situation, in consonance with the laid down norms in India’s defence purchases to avoid corruption and other allegations, was the key for subsequent developments.

“Money and bribes could have changed hands...the CBI will probe that. But the technical evaluation process was followed meticulously, as per the directives of the PMO. There were no short-cuts, no tweaking to suit a particular company,” said a source.

It all began in 1999. IAF had then first proposed the replacement for its ageing Russian-origin Mi-8 helicopters, which are still being used by the elite Communication Squadron to ferry around President, PM and other top dignitaries.

The tender or the RFP (request for proposal) for eight new VVIP choppers was subsequently issued in 2002. Of the four vendors that responded, only the Eurocopter EC-225 chopper passed muster as far as the requirement for being capable of flying at an “operational ceiling” of 6,000-metre was concerned. The AW-101, then called the EH-101, could not participate since it was not certified at that time to fly at 6,000-metre.

With only the EC-225 figuring in the subsequent report submitted to the PMO, Mishra raised the question of the single-vendor situation. The SPG also objected to the cabin height of 1.39-metre, holding it was not adequate for the VVIPs and the armed security personnel who would be on board as well as casualty evacuation.

Apart from also not having the missile airborne warning system, the S-92 also failed to meet the requirement for the 4,500-metre service ceiling. The AW-101 sailed its way through the trials to bag the contract finally inked in February 2010.

Top defence ministry sources say the need to avoid a ‘single-vendor’ situation, in consonance with the laid down norms in India’s defence purchases to avoid corruption and other allegations, was the key for subsequent developments
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