Agustawestland scam: CBI to grill ex-IAF chief SP Tyagi, two brothers

New Delhi: The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) on Saturday linked the alleged irregularities in the Rs 3600 crore VVIP chopper deal with AgustaWestland to former Indian Air Force (IAF) chief SP Tyagi. 

According to Times Now, CBI is likely to grill Tyagi along with his two brothers on Monday.

 

Meanwhile, Enforcement Directorate has summoned Tyagi and asked him to appear before it next week. 

On Saturday, former Deputy chief of Indian Air Force JS Gujral was quizzed for 9 hours by the investigative agency probing the case. Gujaral was one of the many senior officials who were part of the meeting in 2005 to decide the height ceiling for the choppers. 

 

Both Tyagi as well as Gujaral have been questioned at length in 2013 but the fresh round of questioning was necessitated after the April 7 order of an Italian court.

ED had earlier registered a PMLA case in this regard in 2014 and named 21 people including Tyagi in its money laundering FIR.

The deal for the choppers went off track in 2013 when Italy arrested the head of Finmeccanica, which owns AgustaWestland, for paying bribes to secure the deal. The government has recovered most of the money paid to the Italian company for the contract. 

An Italian court, which convicted AgustaWestland chief Giuseppe Orsi, had reportedly described how the firm paid bribes to top Congress leaders to bag the Rs. 3,600 crore deal.