NEW DELHI, Aug 5: Decks were cleared for the arrest of Italian businessman Ottavio Quattrocchi with the Delhi High Court today rejecting his plea for quashing an arrest warrant issued against him in the Rs 14.37 billion Bofors gun deal in which he allegedly got a kickback of $ 7.34 million.A Division Bench comprising Justices Devinder Gupta and NG Nandi upheld the arrest warrant issued against Quattrocchi by the trial court and said it was up to the CBI to execute the arrest warrant in accordance with the law.
A special judge had issued on February 6 last year the non-bailable arrest warrant (NBW) against Quattrocchi, who at present is residing in Malaysia, on the request of the CBI which is probing the kickbacks paid in the 155 mm howitzer field Bofors guns purchased from AE Services in Sweden.
The Bench, in its over 70-page judgment also rejected the plea of Quattrocchi, who was allegedly close to the then Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi, to quash the red alert issued by the Interpol.
The bench saidthe special judge had powers to issue the arrest warrants as he was satisfied from the records that there was ``prima facie evidence'' of Quattrocchi's involvement in the gun deal kickbacks case.
The red corner notice was issued by Interpol on February 17 last year, 11 days after issuance of the NBW.
Opposing the anticipatory bail plea of Quattrocchi, CBI informed the High Court that it had plans to charge sheet the Italian businessman, former external affairs minister Madhavsinh Solanki, former Defence Secretary S.K. Bhatnagar and Gopi Krishan Arora for their alleged involvement in the gun deal.
The agency had said investigations showed that the families of the then Prime Minister of India (Rajiv Gandhi) and Quattrocchi were ``on very intimate terms with each other'' and Quattrocchi was able to project himself as a person of great influence.
The CBI said ``it is clear from the documents received by the agency from the Swiss authorities in January 1997 that he is the beneficiary of the moneys paidinto AE Services account, the first installment of which alone was US $ 7.34 million.''
Tracing the route of payment of commission by AB Bofors from the account of AE Services to two other joint accounts of Quattrocchi and his wife Maria, the CBI had said ``it is therefore clear that AE Services is none other than Quattrocchi's front company... Investigation proceedings were launched to break the front of this company (inter investment development co.) to find out the ultimate destination of these funds.''
Copyright © 1998 Indian Express Newspapers (Bombay) Ltd.
