Defending Finmeccanica SpA's jailed ex-chief executive officer Giuseppe Orsi, Italy's three-time former prime minister Silvio Berlusconi on Thursday said bribes are a necessary part of doing business globally.
Govt said that it will take "suitable action" against Finmeccanica.
Former Finmeccanica CEO Giuseppe Orsi, who faces an 'instant trial' in June over allegations of corruption in the Rs 3,600 crore VVIP chopper deal with India, was on Saturday released from jail.
Former Finmeccanica CEO Giuseppe Orsi was questioned by an Italian magistrate on Wednesday in connection with allegations that kickbacks to the tune of Rs 362 crore were paid in India to bag VVIP helicopter deal.
Former Finmeccanica Chief Executive Officer Giuseppe Orsi has denied knowing the family of Air Chief Marshal S P Tyagi in the ongoing investigations in Italy into the alleged payment of kickbacks of Rs 362 crore for supplying 12 VVIP choppers to India.
"Giuseppe Orsi, the head of Italian defence and aerospace giant Finmeccanica, was arrested on Monday in relation to a probe into international corruption. He is suspected of involvement in the payment of bribes regarding the sale to the Indian government of 12 helicopters produced by Finmeccanica's subsidiary AgustaWestland," Italian news agency Ansa said.
The government has received the first set of official documents from Italy in connection with the VVIP chopper scam including the warrants issued against former Finmeccanica CEO Giuseppe Orsi by authorities there.
This is the message Finmeccanica chief Giuseppe Orsi sent along with a bottle of champagne to his rivals American Sikorsky, a day ahead of the award of the Rs 3,600 crore contract in February 2010, according to a report by the Italian investigators.
The Central Bureau of Investigation team which reached Italy on Tuesday to probe role of Indians in the alleged Rs 3,600 crore VVIP helicopter deal scam met its lawyer and described the meeting as "useful."
Rejecting allegations of "non-cooperation", the Central Bureau of Investigation has said that all documents related to AgustaWestland helicopter bribery scandal have been provided to prosecutors in Italy who are contesting the case there.
When the IAF veterans' bail petition came up for hearing, in an unprecedented move, senior serving and retired Air Marshals and Air Vice Marshals rallied behind the accused officers and appeared before the court to give sureties for each, something that has never happened ever before.
The court asked them to furnish a bail bond of Rs 1 lakh with one surety of the like amount.
Parrikar had recently challenged the Congress to show the order by the UPA government confirming the blacklisting.
Others named in the chargesheet include alleged European middlemen in the deal, Carlo Gerosa and Guido Haschke.
Italian defence and aerospace major Finmeccanica's former chief Giuseppe Orsi has been sentenced by the Milan appeals court to 4.5 years in jail for false accounting and corruption in the sale of 12 VVIP choppers to India for over Rs 3,600 crore.
Embattled Anglo-Italian helicopter maker AgustaWestland may face a probe in the UK over its 480 million pounds scandal-hit deal with India for the supply of 12 VVIP choppers.
He was subjected to a marathon 10-hour questioning on Thursday by ED investigators.
The ex-IAF chief was questioned in the same case by CBI for the last three days. This is the first time that the ex-Chief of Staff of the Indian Air Force has been summoned by the Enforcement Directorate.
Italian prosecutors have "shelved" proceedings against defence major Finmeccannica, the parent firm of AgustaWestland, saying it had nothing to do with the alleged corruption in India's Rs 3,600-crore deal to procure 12 VVIP helicopters, Italian news agency Ansa reported.
Orsi was at the helm of AugustaWestland when the deal was struck and he is suspected of involvement in the payment of bribes.
India has received a fresh tranche of crucial documents from Italy in connection with Rs 3,600 crore VVIP helicopter deal which is likely to help Central Bureau of Investigation in expediting the probe into the bribery scam allegedly involving the then Indian Air Force chief S P Tyagi.
Michel may prove to be the missing link in the money trail in the alleged multi-crore scam being probed by the CBI.
The Bharatiya Janata Party plans to target Sonia Gandhi and other Congress leaders on the issue of bribes in the AgustaWestland chopper deal during the United Progressive Alliance regime
Michel was extradited in an operation under the guidance of National Security Advisor Ajit Doval, the Central Bureau of Investigation said on Tuesday.
Officials said the agency has sought property details on ten serving and retired officials of the ministry of defence and the IAF.
Widening its probe in the Rs 3,600 crore VVIP chopper deal, the ED has begun a trail of "cash" which is suspected to have been paid as alleged kickbacks.
The Enforcement Directorate has filed a fresh charge sheet, delving specifically into the role of British national and alleged middleman Christian Michel James and his few Indian associates, in connection with its money laundering probe in the Rs 3,600 crore VVIP chopper deal.
A Delhi court has allowed the plea of two family members of former Indian Air Force chief S P Tyagi, accused in the Rs 3600 crore VVIP helicopter deal scam, to defreeze their bank accounts subject to certain conditions.
The probe agency sought nine days further remand of Michel for his custodial interrogation saying he was not cooperating in the investigation of the case.
The Delhi High Court on Thursday sought response of the Centre and the Enforcement Directorate on the bail plea of businessman Gautam Khaitan, arrested last month in a money laundering case related to the Rs 3,600-crore VVIP chopper deal.
Nitin Gokhale, national security expert and founder BharatShakti.in, tells us what the controversy is all about.
With an aggressive Opposition and unyielding government, important legislation could be the biggest casualty, as details of the helicopter contract surface.
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