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Chandigarh:
The names of two Chandigarh-based companies have emerged in the
controversy around the $750 million VVIP chopper deal with Italian
company Finmeccanica, which was supplying the AgustaWestland
helicopters to India.
The names of Aero-Matrix Info Solutions Private Limited, based in
DLF building in Chandigarh's Rajiv Gandhi Technology Park, and IDS
Infotech, which is based in Mohali, near Chandigarh, have figured
in the media in the VVIP chopper deal controversy.
The AgustaWestland chopper deal, for which the defence ministry
has now initiated the process for its cancellation, is in the eye
of the storm over the alleged payment of around 51 million euro as
kickbacks paid by Finmeccanica to companies and high-profile
people in India to clinch the deal.
The bribe payments, as investigated by the Italian investigating
agency, were allegedly routed to India through two companies - IDS
Tunisia and IDS Mauritius. Investigating agencies are yet to
establish the curious link between the IDS in Tunisia and
Mauritius and IDS Infotech here.
The balance sheets of IDS Infotech do provide a link with IDS
Tunisia.
Aero-Matrix was set up here in 2007 with Parveen Bakshi as its
chief executive officer (CEO). Before this, Bakshi was working
with IDS Infotech, which has Chandigarh-based entrepreneur Pratap
Aggarwal as its managing director. Aggarwal is an active member of
the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII).
Bakshi told the media here: "We are only an engineering service
provider (to AgustaWestland). We are not concerned with the
(bribery) allegations."
However, one of the two foreign directors of Aero-Matrix, Guido
Ralph Haschke, who is Switzerland-based, is being investigated by
the Italian agency on bribery charges in the deal.
Aero-Matrix records also show links to Mauritius-based Infotech
Design Systems Limited.
IDS Infotech has Satish Bagrodia, a former president of the PHD
Chamber of Commerce (PHDCC) as chairman. His son, Manish Bagrodia,
is also a director at IDS Infotech.
Bagrodia's office told media Friday that he had nothing to do with
the controversy since IDS Infotech was managed by Pratap Aggarwal.
Efforts to reach Pratap Aggarwal failed.
The defence ministry Friday said it had "initiated action for
cancellation of contract for procurement of 12 AW101 helicopters
for the use of VVIPs".
It also issued a formal show cause notice to AgustaWestland, a
subsidiary of Finmeccanica, seeking cancellation of contract and
"taking other actions as per the terms of the contract and the
Integrity Pact". The company has been given seven days to reply.
The action comes a day after the government warned Finmeccanica of
legal action, including blacklisting, and asked whether any slush
money had been paid to fix the deal that has led to a political
uproar.
The defence procurement scam came to light when the Italian
government arrested Finmeccanica CEO Giuseppe Orsi Tuesday for
allegedly paying bribes to clinch the chopper deal. The government
launched a Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) probe into the
bribery charges on Tuesday.
India has inducted only three of the 12 AgustaWestland-101
helicopters till now, with the remaining nine slated for delivery
later this year. India is so far reported to have paid part of the
total amount to AgustaWestland, the Britain-based subsidiary of
Finmeccanica.
(Jaideep Sarin can be contacted at jaideep.s@ians.in)
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