Journalist and author Chitra Subramaniam has demanded that the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) make public its findings from the "box of evidence" received from Switzerland regarding the Bofors payoffs. Subramaniam, author of 'Boforsgate: A Journalist's Pursuit of Truth', expressed concerns about the lack of transparency surrounding the evidence, questioning who opened the box, when it was opened, and what it contained. She also raised doubts about the official narrative regarding the alleged bribe in the Bofors case, suggesting the sum of Rs 64 crore may not reflect the full extent of the corruption. Subramaniam also alleged that the CBI planted stories about Hindi film actor Amitabh Bachchan to derail the investigation and launched a political vendetta against the Bachchans. She recalled that Bachchan had come to her home and asked if she had seen his name. The CBI has recently requested assistance from the United States in the case, seeking information from private investigator Michael Hershman, who claims to have crucial details about the scandal. The Bofors scandal, a major bribery case involving the Indian government and the Swedish arms manufacturer Bofors in the 1980s, pertains to allegations of a Rs 64-crore bribe in a Rs 1,437-crore deal for the supply of 400 155mm field Howitzers.
The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) has sent a judicial request to the United States seeking information from private investigator Michael Hershman, who has claimed to possess crucial details about the Rs 64-crore Bofors bribery scandal of the 1980s. Hershman, the head of the Fairfax Group, had previously expressed his willingness to share information with Indian agencies, alleging that the investigation into the scam was derailed by the then Congress government. The CBI's request comes after previous attempts to obtain information from US authorities yielded no results. This move highlights the continued efforts to uncover the truth behind the decades-old scandal, which has had a significant impact on Indian politics.
Sarma said the defamation case will be filed after Prime Minister Narendra Modi's visit to Guwahati on April 14.
The government does not plan to launch any fresh probe into the Bofors gun deal and Ottavio Quattrocchi stands "discharged" as he could not be extradited even after 20 years of registration of the case, Defence Minister A K Antony said.
Union Law Minister M Veerappa Moily has backed the Centre's decision to drop the case against Ottavio Quattrocchi admitting that there was nothing left to do in the case.
However, he has been asked not to leave the country.
The Central Bureau of Investigation seeks two weeks time in a Delhi Court for exploring the options available to it following withdrawal of Red Corner notice against Italian businessman Ottavio Quattrocchi in the Bofors payoff case.
The Congress on Wednesday scoffed at the Opposition's attempts to link Italy's refusal to send back its two marines to face investigations here with India's failure in getting the extradition of Bofors scam accused Ottavio Quattrocchi in the past saying both are different cases.
The Bharatiya Janata Party's parliamentary body on Wednesday decided to rake up the Bofors pay-off issue in Parliament in the wake of fresh allegations that then prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi may have 'soft-pedalled' the probe to protect Italian businessman Ottavio Quattrocchi.
Quattrocchi was detained and is now on bail in Argentina.
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In a 206-page petition submitted to Prime Minister Dr Manmohan Singh on Sunday, Janata Party president Subramanian Swamy sought to prosecute Congress President Sonia Gandhi under the Prevention of Corruption Act in the Bofors case.
The case related to an RTI application seeking to know the reasons for filing case withdrawal application against one of the prime accused, Italian Businessman Ottavio Quattrocchi, in the Delhi high court.
The Bharatiya Janata Party sought to project Swami Aseemanand's reported confession of his involvement in Samjhauta blast as a diversionary tactic by Congress in the wake of latest revelations in the Bofors case, accusing the ruling party of giving leverage to Pakistani terrorists by throwing the blame on Hindu radicals for their acts.
A Delhi court on Friday accepted the Central Bureau of Investigation plea to shut the Bofors payoff case against Italian businessman Ottavio Quattrocchi. The verdict of the court comes as a relief for Quattrocchi, as the CBI will now withdraw its case against him.
The CBI had, in October 2009, sought permission of the court to withdraw the case against Quattrocchi, saying that his continued prosecution was "unjustified" in the light of various factors including the agency's failed attempts to extradite him.
Reserving its order to February 21 on the Central Bureau of Investigation's plea for closing the Bofors payoff case against Italian businessman Ottavio Quattrocchi, a Delhi court pulled up the agency saying its probe has "not moved an inch" in the last 24 years.
A Delhi court on Saturday decided to hold the proceedings afresh on the Central Bureau of Investigation's plea to withdraw the two-decade-old Bofors pay-off case against Italian businessman Ottavio Quattrocchi. Chief Metropolitan Magistrate Kaveri Baweja, who had earlier reserved her order and deferred the pronouncement of verdict on eight occasions, decided to hear the argument afresh as the trial court record, lying with the Supreme Court, was received two days ago.
Meeting against the backdrop of reports of Bofors kickbacks, the Bharatiya Janata Party's National Executive on Sunday decided to go after the first family of Congress, alleging that Ottavio Quattrocchi's involvement in the pay-offs lead 'directly to the doorstep of Sonia Gandhi'.
Training its guns on Prime Minister Manmohan Singh in the Bofors pay-offs scandal, the Bharatiya Janata Party on Tuesday demanded that he apologise for defending Italian businessman Ottavio Quattrochi. "Mr PM, you tried to give a clean chit to Quattrocchi," BJP spokesperson Ravi Shankar Prasad told reporters, adding this has been found to be false by an income tax tribunal which said that kickbacks of Rs 41 crore were paid to Quattrocchi and Win Chaddha.
With payoffs in Bofors gun deal under the spotlight again, a former Central Bureau of Investigation officer who supervised the case claimed that alleged hawala dealer SK Jain told the probe agency he and Ottavio Quattrocchi received kickbacks from projects routed through them including the howitzer deal.
The CBI on Tuesday pleaded for the withdrawal of proceedings against Italian businessman Ottavio Quattrocchi in the over two-decade-old Bofors pay off case, saying it has got no fresh instructions from the government in the wake of the Income Tax Appellate Tribunal order.The ITAT order, which had on Monday said that kickbacks of Rs 41 crore were paid to late Win Chaddha and Quattrocchi in the Howitzer gun deal, was placed before the court.
A Delhi court on Saturday deferred the pronouncement of its order on a plea by an advocate opposing Central Bureau of Investigation's move to withdraw the two-decade-old Bofors pay-off case against Italian businessman Ottavio Quattrocchi.
A Delhi court on Tuesday reserved its order on a plea of Central Bureau of Investigation seeking withdrawal of criminal proceedings against Italian businessman Ottavio Quattrocchi in more than two-decade-old Bofors pay off case.
The Central Bureau of Investigation on Thursday contended before a Delhi court that there is no change in government's stand on withdrawing the case against Italian businessman Ottavio Quattrocchi in the wake of the Income Tax Appellate Tribunal (ITAT) order in the Bofors pay-offs case.
As an income tax tribunal on Monday said Rs 41 crore as commission were paid to late Win Chaddha, an agent of the Swedish arms manufacturer Bofors, and Italian businessman Ottavio Quattrochchi in the gun deal, the Bharatiya Janata Party on Monday condemned Congress President Sonia Gandhi's plan to fight graft and demanded a Special Investigative Team to look afresh at the whole issue saying there should be no cover-up.
A Delhi court deferred till April 17, pronouncement of its order on a plea of a lawyer objecting to Central Bureau of Investigations' move to withdraw the two-decade-old Bofors pay-off case against Italian businessman Ottavio Quattrocchi.
A Delhi court on Monday deferred the pronouncement of its order on a plea by an advocate opposing the Central Bureau of Investigation's move to withdraw the two-decade-old Bofors pay-off case against Italian businessman Ottavio Quattrocchi. Chief Metropolitan Magistrate Kaveri Baweja posted the matter for further proceedings on August 7 in view of the case records lying with the Supreme Court.
A Bench headed by Chief Justice K G Balakrishnan asked the Centre to place the documents after translating them.
A Delhi court on Saturday deferred till May 15 pronouncement of its order on a plea of a lawyer objecting to CBI's move to withdraw the two-decade-old Bofors pay-off case against Italian businessman Ottavio Quattrocchi.
The Bofors ghost returned to haunt the Congress party with an income tax tribunal saying that kickbacks of Rs 41 crore were paid to late Win Chaddha, an agent of the Swedish arms manufacturer and Italian businessman Ottavio Quattrocchi in the Howitzer gun deal and that they are liable to pay tax in India on such income.
The Supreme Court on Tuesday asked an advocate pursuing the Bofors pay-off case to withdraw his petition seeking directions to the Central Bureau of Investigation to take action for stopping defreezing of bank accounts of Italian businessman Ottavio Quattarocchi, an accused in the case, in London.
The Central Bureau of Investigation on Saturday filed an application before a Delhi court seeking closure of the Bofors pay-off case against Italian businessman Ottavio Quattrocchi. In the plea filed before Chief Metropolitan Magistrate Kaveri Baweja, the probe agency said all efforts to extradite Quattrocchi for facing the trial in India has failed.The agency opposed the plea of advocate Ajay Agrawal, who had filed an application in his personal capacity.
The Central Bureau of Investigation will formally move an application before the Magistrates Court in Delhi on Saturday withdrawing the cases against Italian businessman Ottavio Quattrocchi in the Bofors gun deal, the Union Law Minister Verrappa Moily has said. "The Government has taken a decision for withdrawal of the cases and the Public Prosecutor, on behalf of the CBI, will move an application before the Magistrate's Court on October 3," Moily told PTI in an interview.
Two days after the Centre decided to close the case against Italian businessman Ottavio Quattrocchi in the Bofors gun deal, an application was on Thursday moved in a Delhi Court seeking rejection of any closure report that may be filed by the Central Bureau of Investigation.
The Congress on Wednesday justified the withdrawal of case against prime accused Ottavio Quattrocchi in the Bofors issue and accused the opposition parties of "flogging a dead horse" over it.
The Centre has told the Supreme Court that it has decided to withdraw the case against Italian businessmen Ottavio Quattrocchi, who was one of the main accused in the Bofors scandal.
"I want to know from the Congress as to why it is agitated and telling lies repeatedly. Is it because there is no Quattrocchi mama or Christian Michel in defence deals done by the BJP government," Modi said.
The Central Bureau of Investigation on Friday opposed the plea of an advocate opposing withdrawal of the two-decade-old Bofors pay-off against Italian businessman Ottavio Quattrocchi in a Delhi court, saying a private party has no locus standi in it.
"It is a good step though taken rather late. The opposition has been bringing out the phantom of Bofors from the cupboard and slaying it again and again for the last 23 years," party spokesperson Manish Tewari said.
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