The central government is pursuing the allegations of bribery in a deal to procure VVIP helicopters from Augusta Westland, but no formal inquiry has been ordered into the case due to lack of "specific information" so far, Defence Minister A K Antony said on Monday.
Alleging that the Congress-led United Progressive Alliance government's mindset has led to "decay" of key institutions including Parliament, the Bharatiya Janata Party on Saturday said it poses a serious issue before the next Lok Sabha as it is threatening the survival of democracy in the country.
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 ED also told the special court that Christian Michel had spoken about 'the son of the Italian lady' and how he is going to become the 'next prime minister of the country'.
It is too premature to point a finger at former Air Chief Marshal SP Tyagi. India's mind-boggling acquisition procedure is so complex that no foreign agency can handle the deal without involving a middleman, Air Marshal (retired) B K Pandey tells rediff.com's Vicky Nanjappa
Congress sought to put the onus on the ruling NDA government about the irregularities in AgustaWestland helicopter deal.
"My first reaction is shock... How can anybody say this, on what basis?" Tyagi told NDTV when asked whether he was involved in the VVIP chopper scam.
A day after terminating the tainted VVIP helicopter deal with AugustaWestland, the defence ministry has set in motion the process of encashing the bank guarantee of nearly Rs 1,700 crore furnished by the Anglo-Italian firm.
Armed with fresh details on the alleged kickbacks, India has initiated steps to cancel the Rs 3,600 crore-chopper deal with Anglo-Italian firm AgustaWestland by issuing a show cause notice to it in this regard.
The UPA chairperson has resorted to the last refuge of the desperate, by accusing the BJP of indulging in divisive politics by "sowing seeds of poison", says Arun Jaitley
He also questioned Prime Minister Narendra Modi's "silence" on the issue.
Former Defence Minister A K Antony on Wednesday acknowledged "corruption" in the AgustaWestland chopper deal.
Shah said the 'friendship' between Christian Michel, the alleged middleman in the deal, and Congress' top leadership is 'time tested and deep'.
A special court denied Christian Michel bail in the related Central Bureau of Investigation case.
Junking of old Rs 500 and Rs 1000 notes, he said, will help the world's fastest growing major economy to move towards less cash economy and digital payments that will help shore up tax revenues and check evasions.
'The range of purchases throw a light on India's threat perception as also its perceived role of being a stabilising influence in the region,' says Brigadier S K Chatterji (retd).
The Chair expunged Swamy's reference to the Constitution of another country that triggered vociferous protests from Congress members.
The government vowed to track down the main beneficiaries of the kickbacks so that "we can do" what "we could not do in Bofors
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