On 9 December, the CBI arrested SP Tyagi, former Chief of Air Staff, in the controversial AgustaWestland case and remanded him to judicial custody.
The development – unprecedented and surprising – has shocked many.
Writing for Business Standard, former commander-in-chief of Eastern Naval Command, Premvir Das describes how Tyagi has been taken into custody without any credible proof. There is speculation that Tyagi's arrest is to "squeal against some politicians."
But Das pointed out that the arrest of a person of Tyagi's stature without credible proof is demoralising for the fighting forces.
All one can hope is that this arrest will lead to early identification and conviction of the real culprits because if it does not, then the entire credibility of this government will lie in tatters with the combat capability of the Indian armed forces, heavily dependent on the morale of its men, needlessly put on the block.
Tyagi has been accused of tampering with Air Staff Requirements to make sure AgustaWestland received the contract for the VVIP helicopters in question. He's also accused of accepting a considerable bribe.
Das, however, contends that Tyagi was not even in the air headquarters at the time of the deal. Negotiations were conducted by the then defence secretary, not the air chief.
The one involvement he had in the scam was perhaps that in the minutes of a meeting held in the defence secretary's office in 2005-06, he modified a phrase “two engine configuration” to “not less than two engines”.
The CBI named him in an FIR three years ago. Now for the first time, the CBI has accused Tyagi of acquiring land costing Rs 1.60 crore without declaring it.
Additionally, even while a lower Italian court found Tyagi not involved in taking bribes from middlemen, a superior court 'thought' he might have been involved, writes Das. The CBI said that it decided to arrest Tyagi after it managed to gather some “clinching evidence”.
“At this stage, the former air chief appears more sinned against than sinning,” laments Das.
(Source: Business Standard)
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