Explain how AgustaWestland chargesheet was leaked, court tells ED

New Delhi, Apr 07: A court here has sought an explanation from the Enforcement Directorate on how the chargesheet in the AgustaWestland case had been leaked to the media.

The observation was made while admitting the supplementary chargesheet filed by the ED. The ED has charged alleged middleman, James Christian Michel of paying kickbacks to politicians, civil servants and defence officials to secure the deal.

The court said that it wanted a status report from the ED by April 11. Further the court also issued summons to David Syma, a business associate of Michel.

Michel's lawyers argued that the ED had leaked the chargesheet to the media even before the court could take cognisance of the same. The ED said that a notice should be issued to a television channel for displaying the chargesheet on Thursday night. The court however refused to issue notice.

On Friday, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said that Michel had named senior Congress leaders including the Gandhi family. He said that Michel claimed to have paid money to one AP and FAM. He went on to allege that AP stood for Ahmed Patel, while FAM stood for family.