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| title | chunk | source | category | tags | date_saved | instance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2013 Indian helicopter bribery scandal | 3/3 | https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2013_Indian_helicopter_bribery_scandal | reference | science, encyclopedia | 2026-05-05T14:11:50.606118+00:00 | kb-cron |
== CBI probe == The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) approached Union Law Ministry to record statements of M. K. Narayanan and B. V. Wanchoo in January 2014. M.K Narayanan and B. V. Wanchoo were West Bengal and Goa Governors respectively at the time of CBI's request. Their statements were considered vital as they were National Security Adviser and Special Protection Group (SPG) chief at the time of the signing of the contract with AgustaWestland. Their views were also considered before the Indian Government signed the contract with AgustaWestland. However, Kapil Sibal's Union Law ministry stonewalled the CBI probe by rejecting CBI's request to examine them under the usual excuse of "immunity." The CBI, therefore, approached President Pranab Mukherjee to seek permission to examine ex-NSA and ex-chief of SPG. M. K. Narayanan and B. V. Wanchoo were questioned by CBI later in June and July 2014 respectively.
== Recovery of bank guarantee == After the cancellation of the contract, India encashed over ₹2.5 billion (US$26 million) made by AgustaWestland as a bank guarantee in the Indian banks in January 2014. Separately, India requested the Italian government to retrieve the bank guarantee amount made by the firm in Italian banks which was more than €275 million (₹ 23.64 billion). On 17 March 2014, a request made by India was rejected by an Italian court. However, the appellate court in Milan reversed the lower court's judgement and upheld the claims of the Indian government. Accordingly, in June 2014, the Indian government encashed ₹18.18 billion (US$190 million), taking the total amount recovered so far to ₹20.68 billion (US$220 million). With this, India was reported to have recovered the entire amount of around ₹16.2 billion (US$170 million) (45% of the total contract value ₹36 billion (US$380 million)) it had paid to AgustaWestland. However, it was later reported that AgustaWestland had not returned the entire amount, and kept €106 million for three helicopters it had delivered.
== Italian court judgments == Italian prosecutors started investigating the case in late 2011. After completing the investigations, they referred the case for trial to the Court of Busto Arsizio. The Italian court, passing its judgment in October 2014, acquitted ex-IAF Chief S. P. Tyagi of all corruption charges. It also acquitted the former Finmeccanica CEO Giuseppe Orsi and former AgustaWestland head Bruno Spagnolini of "charges of international corruption". The court, however, convicted and sentenced them to two years in prison on the lesser charge of "false invoicing" in the case. On 8 April 2016, the Milan Court of Appeal, in a 225-page judgement, overturned the lower court verdict and sentenced Giuseppe Orsi to four years' imprisonment. Then, on 16 December 2016, the Corte di Cassazione (Supreme Court) cancelled the Appeals Court guilty verdict, and ordered a retrial, referring the matter to a different Court of Appeal in Milan. After nine months of proceedings, on 8 January 2018, the Milan Third Court of Appeals finally cleared the defendants and dismissed all charges, on grounds of insufficient evidence provided by the prosecution to support the allegations The verdict was upheld by the Supreme Court of Cassazione on 22 May 2019 after the Milan General Prosecutor's office failed to have a recourse supported by the Attorney General.
== References ==