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British middleman hauled to India over chopper scam
NEW DELHI, Dec 5, 2018 (BSS/AFP) – The alleged British middleman in a
scandal-hit helicopter deal between India and an Anglo-Italian firm was due
to appear in a Delhi court on Wednesday after being extradited by the UAE,
authorities said.
Christian Michel James is accused of arranging kickbacks to Indian
officials to secure a deal for AgustaWestland to supply New Delhi with 12
helicopters for 556 million euros ($630 million).
Italian prosecutors suspect illegal sweeteners worth about 10 percent of
the contract, or some 55 million euros, were paid out in bribes. India
cancelled the deal in January 2013.
James, who in previous interviews with Indian newspapers denied any
wrongdoing, was detained in Dubai in February 2017 following an Indian arrest
warrant and an Interpol notice.
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has
sought to capitalise politically on the scandal as the contract was signed
under the previous government of the Congress party.
The BJP said on Tuesday that the case could spell “serious trouble” for the
“first family” of Congress, referring to the party’s long-powerful Nehru-
Gandhi dynasty, Indian media reported.
In Italy, the former head of AgustaWestland and of parent company
Finmeccanica were given jail sentences in 2014 over the scandal but they were
later acquitted.
BSS/AFP/MRI/1240 hrs