Arun Nehru owns up meeting Swedish envoy in Bofors deal

Former federal minister Arun Nehru has admitted to the Central Bureau of Investigation that he had met in mid-1985 the then Swedish ambassador in connection with the proposed purchase of guns for the army. The CBI is interrogating Nehru in the Bofors kickbacks case.

During the 90-minute interrogation on Tuesday, March 18, Nehru revealed he had also met ambassadors of France and the United Kingdom, sources claimed.

The former minister was grilled at the CBI headquarters in New Delhi to ascertain whether he had, as reported over 1988-89, met the then Swedish ambassador in connection with the finalisation of the nearly Rs 15-billion deal with Swedish arms manufacturers AB Bofors.

Nehru told the CBI's Special Investigation Team headed by Additional Director Revenna Siddaiah that he had met the envoys on the instructions of then prime minister Rajiv Gandhi.

Gandhi had also asked former prime minister and then a federal minister V P Singh to meet then Swedish prime minister Olof Palme to apprise him of preliminary discussions being held with gun manufacturers including Bofors and Sofma of France.

Sources claim Nehru told the investigators that Gandhi had asked him to convey to the ambassadors that there would be no commission or middlemen in the proposed deal which was at a very preliminary stage then.

He said he had told then Swedish ambassador Axel Edelstram that Bofors should be dealing directly with the defence ministry in connection with the sale of Howitzer guns to the army.

This fact had been mentioned in the envoy's letter to his government, Nehru is said to have pointed out.

He, however, expressed displeasure at media reports which had quoted contents of the letter out of context.

The Swedish diplomat was also asked to convey that ''there should be a political commitment'' to the effect that there would be no commission.

The sources said Nehru also made it clear that his role had ended in July 1985, much before the finalisation of the deal in December 1986 in which Rs 640 million was alleged to have been paid as kickbacks.

The CBI has already examined former army chief General K Sundarji and other senior retired officials, both from the army and the civil services.

The then minister of state for defence Arun Singh has also been questioned.

CBI Director Joginder Singh has gone on record saying that the investigations would be completed by April 30.

UNI