VVIP chopper deal: Dubai-based bizman urges court to cancel NBW

New Delhi, Jan 5: A director of two Dubai-based firms has approached a special court seeking cancellation of a non-bailable warrant (NBW) issued against him earlier in a money laundering case connected with the Rs 3,600-crore VVIP chopper deal.

The court had on October 6 last year issued the NBW against Rajeev Saxena, one of the directors of M/s UHY Saxena and M/s Matrix Holdings, after the Enforcement Directorate told the court that he was evading summons to join the probe.

In his application moved through his advocate, Saxena sought cancellation of the warrant claiming he was not an absconder and that he had given all the details and documents to the ED.

In its written reply filed through special public prosecutor N K Matta, the agency opposed Saxena's application saying he had not joined the investigation despite repeated summons and that he was required to aid in the probe. Rajeev's name was mentioned in a charge sheet filed against his wife Shivani Saxena, who is out on bail after being arrested by the ED. However, he has not been arrayed as an accused so far and the agency has told the court that another supplementary charge sheet may follow.

Saxenas are residents of Palm Jumeirah in Dubai, an archipelago which is home to the most expensive properties in the United Arab Emirates (UAE), the charge sheet claimed. It was alleged by the probe agency that the two Dubai- based firms were the entities "through which the proceeds of crime have been routed and further layered and integrated in buying the immovable properties/shares, among others" in this case.

The agency claimed that its probe had found that AgustaWestland, United Kingdom, had "paid an amount of Euro 58 million as kickbacks" through two Tunisia-based firms. "These companies further siphoned off the said money in the name of consultancy contracts to M/s Interstellar Technologies Limited, Mauritius and others which were further transferred to M/s UHY Saxena and M/s Matrix Holdings Ltd, Dubai and others," the ED had alleged.

The agency had also arrested Delhi-based businessman Gautam Khaitan who is currently out on bail. It had registered a PMLA case in 2014 and named 21 people in its money laundering FIR.

On January 1, 2014, India had scrapped the contract with Finmeccanica's British subsidiary AgustaWestland for supplying 12 AW-101 VVIP choppers to the IAF over alleged breach of contractual obligations and charges of kickbacks of Rs 423 crore paid by it to secure the deal.

PTI