Faced with fresh difficulties following a tax tribunal?s order on the Bofors case, the government on Tuesday said the ministry of law is examining the order that claims commissions were paid to Italian businessman Ottavio Quattrocchi and Win Chadha in the gun deal.
?The law ministry has already pointed out and is examining the papers…and then it will be seen,? finance minister Pranab Mukherjee said on the sidelines of an ICAI function. Mukherjee said this when asked if the government shall reopen the Bofors case based on the Income Tax Appellate Tribunal (ITAT) order last week in case of late Win Chadha. The ITAT order ruled in favour of a tax liability on the ?commissions? received by Win Chadha and Quatricchi for the liasoning services to the Swedish firm Bofors in India.
The finance minister?s observations came even as a Delhi court, hearing the case regarding pay-offs paid to Italian businessman Ottavio Quattrocchi, adjourned the proceedings till January 6. Pressing for closure of Bofors pay-offs case against Italian businessman Ottavio Quattrocchi, the CBI contended that there was ?nothing new? in the ITAT order that would obstruct the withdrawal of criminal proceeding.
The court, which was to pass its order on the politically sensitive case, started hearing arguments again after Supreme Court lawyer Ajay Agarwal submitted that the matter be looked into afresh in the light of the ITAT order.
The CBI had sought permission of the court to withdraw the case against Quattrocchi, saying that his continued prosecution was ?unjustified? in the light of various factors including the failed attempts of CBI to extradite him.
The apex investigating agency had registered a criminal case on January 20, 1990 to probe who were the beneficiaries of the pay-offs in the 1986 Bofors gun deal. After completing its probe, the agency filed two chargesheets in the case first on October 22, 1999 and the second one on October 9, 2000.
Meanwhile, the BJP has already demanded a reopening of the criminal investigation into the Bofors kickback case by a Special Investigative Team (SIT) after the ITAT order.
The order has said that commissions were paid to late Win Chaddha, an agent of the Swedish arms manufacturer AB Bofors and Italian businessman Ottavio Quattrocchi in the Howitzer gun deal. The tribunal also said that Win Chaddha is liable to pay tax in India on the income. AB Bofors should have deducted the tax at source.
This runs counter to the stand taken by the country?s prime investigating agency CBI that there was no proof of any kickback in relation to the deal. Allegations of kickbacks in the 1987 deal kicked up a political storm, leading to the defeat of late prime minister Rajiv Gandhi in the subsequent Lok Sabha elections.