The CBI has moved a Delhi court for a direction to go ahead with further investigation into the 1986 Bofors payoff scandal, claiming that it has obtained fresh evidence and material in this regard.
The premier investigation agency filed its application before Chief Metropolitan Magistrate Ashu Garg on 1 February.The CBI’s move came a day before it filed a petition in the Supreme Court to challenge the Delhi High Court’s 2005 judgment acquitting all accused in the Bofors case. The agency’s case in the Rs 64 crore Bofors payoff scam was then quashed by Justice R S Sodhi of the high court on 31 May 2005.
The CBI informed the apex court about the filing of the application in the trial court which has posted it for further hearing on 17 February. The agency on Friday informed the apex court through a special leave petition (SLP) that “An application under Section 173 (8) of the Code has been moved before the trial court which has been directed by the trial court vide order dated February 1 to be taken up for consideration on February 17.”
Days after Attorney General (AG) K K Venugopal advised the Centre against it, the CBI filed a plea in the top court challenging the Delhi High Court’s 2005 order. Venugopal had advised the government against an appeal, saying it was likely to be dismissed on account of the long delay itself. But the CBI was reportedly keen to file the appeal.
The CBI had earlier indicated that it was considering an appeal against the high court decision after Michael Hershman, a private detective from US-based firm Fairfax, alleged that the then Congress government led by late PM Rajiv Gandhi had sabotaged his investigation into the case.
Before Justice Sodhi’s verdict, Justice J D Kapoor of the high court had on 4 February 2004 exonerated late PM Rajiv Gandhi in the Bofors case. Those against whom the first charge sheet in the case was filed on 22 October 1999 included alleged middleman Win Chadda, Ottavio Quattrocchi, the then Defence Secretary S K Bhatnagar, Ardbo and the Bofors company. This was followed by a supplementary charge-sheet against the other alleged middlemen, the Hindujas ~ S P Hinduja, G P Hinduja and P P Hinduja.
Quattrocchi, Bhatnagar, Chadda and Ardbo are now dead. Quattrocchi, who had never appeared in a court in India, had fled from the country on 29-30 July 1993. The Bofors kickback case is related to the Rs 1,437-crore deal in 1986 between India and A B Bofors, a Swedish arms manufacturing company, for the supply of 400 howitzer guns for the Army.