AgustaWestland scam: CBI questions Tyagi brothers, Khaitan

New Delhi

CBI today questioned cousins of former Indian Air Force Chief S P Tyagi–Sanjeev, Rajeev and Sandeep–besides advocate Gautam Khaitan for nearly eight hours asking exhaustively about finances, firms established by them and their relations with European middlemen in Agusta Westland VVIP helicopter deal.

The sources said questioning revolved around accounts of IDS Tunisia and remittances received by it.

They said some documents which Khaitan was not carrying yesterday were brought by him.

CBI claimed that Khaitan was being evasive during questioning and “concealing” information.

Agency sources said the Managing Director of IDS Infotech Partap K Aggarwal and CEO of Aeromatrix Info Solutions Pvt.

Ltd Praveen Bakshi have been called in connection with its probe in the case.

It is believed that their firms were used to route alleged bribe money in India.

Former Air Force Chief S P Tyagi has also been called on Monday again for a fresh round of questioning.

The sources said Aggarwal, Bakshi and Tyagi have been called after some new facts have emerged during the questioning of the four accused today.

Sanjeev Tyagi has not denied his relations with European middlemen Guido Haschke and Carlo Gerosa saying that they know him five to six years before the order was placed.

He has said that the payments received by him were for power sector jobs which were all received through proper banking channels with income tax paid on them. He has said that payments received from middlemen were not for helicopter deal but for some power sector job.

No guilty will be spared “1st or last family”: Parrikar on chopper scam

New Delhi

Ramping up the attack against the Gandhi family on AgustaWestland issue, Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar today said the government will not hesitate to take action against them if they are proven guilty, asserting no one is above law, whether “first or the last family”.

He also took a dig at Arvind Kejriwal for his remarks that the Modi government does not have “enough courage” to arrest Sonia Gandhi, saying the Delhi Chief Minister was feeling left out because he did not get any media publicity for the last 10 ten days when the focus was on the VVIP chopper scam.

“I feel no one is above the law. So whether it is the last family or the first, I don’t see any reason why anyone should be given a differential treatment, provided you have proper legal evidence,” Parrikar told PTI.

He was replying to a query on whether the government could take on the Gandhi family, which is often referred to as the first family of Indian politics.

The Minister, while referring to his statement in the Lok Sabha in which he hoped to do what could not be done in the Bofors case, said, “We have the intention and seriousness and I will ensure that proper and good attempts are made. So there is every possibility we may be able to (do).”

While the then Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi’s name had cropped up in the Bofors’ scandal of 1989, subsequent investigations had failed to authentically pinpoint any links.

Parrikar had said former Air chief S P Tyagi and Gautam Khaitan are “small people” who “simply washed their hands in a flowing ganga (of corruption)” and that the government will “find out where the river was going”.

Parrikar trashed Kejriwal’s outburst that Prime Minister Narendra Modi does not have “enough courage” to arrest Sonia Gandhi and that the BJP and Congress have an “alliance in corruption”.

“It is just a publicity stunt. Kejriwal was jumping to the fray to get attention. For the last 10 days, picture of Prime Minister Modi, Sonia Gandhi for wrong reasons, and at times mine were appearing in the media. To stay dry without publicity for ten days is a big thing for him (Kejriwal),” Parrikar added.

Kejriwal had alleged, “The Italian Court order also has names of Sonia Gandhi, Ahmed Patel, certain officers and Congressmen, but Modi is not able to gather enough courage to arrest Sonia Gandhi, to ask her even two questions, to interrogate her.” PTI