Dinesh Kamath's Editorial 'Another defense deal case' that was published in Newsband

Another defense deal case

Decision-makers in the defence and political establishments often manage to hide the role of middlemen in swinging deals worth hundreds of crores of rupees. Bofors is India’s most famous defence scandal, with deep political and diplomatic ramifications, but it was neither the first nor the last in a long line of defence purchases

Reports of bribery by the Italian defence firm Finmeccanica in the supply of 12 AgustaWestland helicopters for VVIP transport have thus come as no surprise. Finmeccanica and its top executives have been under investigation in Italy for months, but the Indian government chose to do nothing. With the arrest of Finmeccanica head Giuseppe Orsi, Defence Minister A.K. Antony was left with no choice but to order a probe by the Central Bureau of Investigation into the deal.

The Bofors case was a classic instance of messed-up investigation and sloppy prosecution. The Italian chopper deal case must not be allowed to go the same way.

Evidently, all manufacturers feel compelled to pay bribes disguised as commissions on a percentage basis to middlemen and lobbyists for obtaining supply orders from the Indian government. The Defence Minister should bring the wrong-doers to book; otherwise the charges would recoil on him and his party. The efforts must not be directed at escaping blame, but in fixing accountability.

Although the defence dealings are mostly covert in nature, it is not late and the truth must be placed before the country.

Thanks to the probe in Italy because of which we have come to know of this scandal; otherwise the deal was already a done thing.

No doubt A K Antony has personal clean image, but that does not keep him away from the responsibilities held by him at the helm of his office as a defence minister.

Commissions in defence deals have been the talk of the day since last forty years or so. Those exposed have been investigated but except for political fall out, nothing positive has emerged except long delays in essential procurements. Middlemen in deals act like financial terrorists with no religion and no nationality.

A.K. Anthony should spare no efforts to zero in on the truth. But practically speaking it is not as if he is after some minor crooks. He is bound to find that top members of the Government are involved in this deal. Issue will be so embarrassing that he will not be able to do any thing tangible.

The BJP will now get a God-sent opportunity to attack the UPA. It is likely that all other issues will recede into background and this scam will be in the forefront, as it happened in the Bofors case. More the delay in unearthing the money trail, more will the damage to the electoral prospects of the Congress.