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Tag: Finmeccanica

CBI,Tightening Rope,Questions Former IAF Chief Tyagi: VVIPChopper Scam

[New Delhi]CBI,Tightening Rope,Questions Former IAF Chief Tyagi: VVIPChopper Scam
CBI ,Tightening Rope Over Chopper Deal Beneficiaries, Questions Former IAF Chief SP Tyagi
CBI today examined former IAF chief SP Tyagi in connection with alleged corruption in the Rs 3,600-crore AgustaWestland VVIP chopper deal.
Tyagi arrived at CBI headquarters at around 10 AM for questioning.
The Milan Court of Appeals — equivalent of an Indian high Court — has given details of how alleged bribes were paid by helicopter-maker Finmeccanica and AgustaWestland to Indian officials through middlemen to clinch the deal.
The order mentions the name of Tyagi at several points.
CBI had registered a case against Tyagi along with 13 others including his cousins and European middlemen in the case.
The allegation against the Tyagi was that he had reduced flying ceiling of the helicopter from 6,000m to 4,500m (15,000ft) so that AgustaWestland was included in the bids.
However, this decision was reportedly taken in consultation with the officials of SPG and the Prime Minister’s Office including then NSA M K Narayanan.
CBI has alleged that the reduction of the service ceiling–maximum height at which a helicopter can perform normally–allowed the UK-based firm to get into the fray as otherwise its helicopters were not even qualified for submission of bids.
CBI which has received a copy of the Milan court order has now prepared a fresh set of questionnaire to put to Tyagi.
The agency had already questioned Tyagi but this session is the first after the Italian court order.
His cousins have also been called by the agency.

Defence Minister ,To Expose Chopper Scam ,Will Place Facts In Parl On 4th May

[Panaji,Goa] Defence Minister To Place V V V I P Chopper Scam Facts In Parl on May 4
Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar today said he will place all facts along with the detailed chronology about the controversial AgustaWestland chopper deal before Parliament on May 4.
Parrikar was speaking to reporters on the sidelines of an event to lay foundation stone for a football ground in Panaji.
He said “Those who received kickbacks will not leave behind the proof for us to prosecute them, but we will have to prove it (that kickbacks were received),”
Minister further said.”It is for us to prove everything now. Since the issue would be placed in Parliament, I would not like to speak in detail to media,”
Parrikar questioned.”Why no action was taken against the company till 2014? Why was the company not blacklisted by then UPA government?”
“I challenge the Congress to show the UPA government’s order blacklisting the AgustaWestland company. Let them reply first why it was not banned. he claimed .It was during our (NDA) government that we banned it,”
Parrikar had recently challenged the Congress to show the order by the UPA government confirming the blacklisting.
AgustaWestland was not blacklisted during the UPA rule, top Modi government sources had recently claimed, asserting it was the NDA dispensation which had put on hold all acquisition proposals with the VVIP chopper scam-tainted firm.
The deal for the choppers went off track in 2013 when Italy arrested the head of Finmeccanica, which owns AgustaWestland, for paying bribes to secure the deal.
An Italian court, which convicted AgustaWestland chief Giuseppe Orsi, had reportedly described how the firm paid bribes to top Congress leaders to bag the Rs 3,600 crore deal.