AgustaWestland: Italian Court Elaborates on Clean Chit to Tyagi

No evidence to prove money exchanged hands between SP Tyagi and middlemen in AgustaWestland scam: Italian court

(Photo: The Quint)

An Italian appeals court in Milan last week released the judgment on an eight-month-old decision, clearing the name of former Air Force Chief SP Tyagi from charges of corruption in the VVIP helicopter AgustaWestland scam.

The court said:

“At this point in the discussion the Court has already highlighted the absolute lack evidence of the corrective agreement, and the proven non-existence of acts contrary to his own duties of office attributable to Sashi P. Tyagi during the period in which he covered the office of Chief Air Staff.”

In the decision which was pronounced on 8 January 2018, the Italian court had acquitted former Finmeccanica president Giuseppe Orsi and AgustaWestland CEO Bruno Spagnolini on charges of illegal payment of 560 million Euros for striking a deal to sell 12 VVIP helicopters to India.

Tyagi and others were charged under the Prevention of Corruption (PC) Act in India for allegedly favouring the foreign company AgustaWestland in the purchase of 12 VVIP helicopters. The CBI and Enforcement Directorate both have charged Tyagi and others under the PC Act.

The Indian investigative agencies, CBI and the Enforcement Directorate, in their chargesheet on the AgustaWestland case had said that Tyagi was instrumental in reducing the service ceiling of the helicopters from 6,000 metres to 4,500 metres in 2005.

But the Italian court has stated that there isn’t enough evidence to show that Tyagi played any role in it.

“...the documented lack of evidence in relation to any role played by (the former Air  Force Chief) SP Tyagi for the lowering of the operating quota off light of the VIP helicopters (also with reference to its visa of 14 March 2005). Therefore the prospectus at the end delivered by the prosecutor is not founded to the Court”

Prosecution Failed to Prove Money Exchanged Hands

The CBI had said that AgustaWestland allegedly paid 30 million euro in bribe, of which 20 million euros were routed through middlemen Guido Haschke and Carlo Gerosa to India.

But the Italian court has pointed out that the prosecution failed to produce any evidence which would establish that Tyagi and his three cousins, July, Sandeep and Docsa were bribed by the middlemen to favour the AgustaWestland deal.

The court also said that the prosecution failed to quantify the amount of bribe which allegedly were paid to the Indian official by the middlemen for the chopper deal. 

The court said that the prosecution during its arguments claimed that Tyagi brothers had met with the middlemen to discuss bribe amount.

But at the same time, the prosecution was unable to provide any evidence beyond doubt conclusively showing direct or indirect payment to Tyagi.

The court said that the prosecution failed to establish the money trail of the alleged bribe which flowed from AgustaWestland to Haschke, the alleged middleman to the three Tyagi brothers.

Tyagi was arrested by the CBI in December 2017. He got bail within 10 days. According to his lawyer, they hope that the Indian court give due recognition to the Italian court judgment.

While we are still studying the judgment of the Italian Court, we expect a significant overlap in the material produced by the prosecution before both courts. To that extent, we are vindicated by the finding of the foreign court that there is no substance in the charges of corruption levelled by the prosecution. The Italian court being a court of competent jurisdiction, its judicial findings on issues that also arise before the trial court here are relevant. We therefore expect and will urge that the judgment be given recognition and due weightage in accordance with law.

Stuti Gujral, former IAF Chief, SP Tyagi’s lawyer

In September 2018, the Enforcement Directorate filed a chargesheet in the lower court in Delhi against Tyagi and 34 others under the provision of Prevention of Money Laundering Act. It said that a company, in which Tyagi and his brothers are partners, received a kickback of Rs 1 crore for the Rs 3,600-crore AgustaWestland deal. The court took cognisance of the chargesheet and granted bail to Tyagi and others.