Chopper deal: Who is the beneficiary 'family'?

The mention of the word ‘family’ in the Italian chargesheet into the AugustaWestland scam has raised eyebrows.

The chargesheet, which runs into 64 pages, has this to say in its 41st page: On 8th of May, 2011 it has come to light that there were two agreements in place with AW which is where the misunderstanding has arisen. One agreement was for EUR 42m with the team and the other for EUR 28m (not less than 5 per cent of the total contract value) with the family. The team has agreed to reduce their EUR 42m to EUR 30m while recognising the need for the agreement of EUR 28m with the family to be honoured in full.”

The chargesheet alleges that the word ‘family’ had cropped up when Guido Haschke, the middleman for AugustaWestland, spoke of the same. He had said that the family wants 28 million euros arranged, the chargesheet says.

“11 teams, have agreed to reduce its 42 million to 30 million, recognising the need to respect fully the agreement of 28 million with the family.”

The use of the word ‘family’ is being debated by many.

PTI reported that BJP spokesperson Prakash Javdekar said earlier in the day, "Who finalised and signed the VVIP chopper deal? Who received the kickbacks? In two places, the Italian chargesheet talks about payment of 28 million Euros to 'the family'. The nation wants to know who 'the family' is."