As New Delhi begins working on its response to the US Federal Bureau of Investigation’s indictment for the alleged illegal transfer of dual-use items to Indian defence and space entities, two officials from the Defence Research Development Organisation have come under the scanner.

One of them is Manik Mukherjee, who until last year, was a counsellor at the Indian Embassy in Washington. The FBI has alleged that Cirrus Electronics, a firm based in US with offices in Singapore and Bangalore, transferred Intel i980 microprocessors — a dual-use item requiring licenses — for the Tejas Light Combat Aircraft project. The transfer, the indictment says, involved two “co-conspirators” who are officials of the Indian government. One of them was then posted in the Indian Embassy.

The other is claimed to be an official of DRDO’s Aeronautical Development Establishment (ADE) and while his identity is still not clearly established, the FBI has submitted as evidence, e-mails between Cirrus, Mukherjee and one S. Janarthanan of the ADE.

Mukherjee was Counsellor (Defence Technology) at the Indian Embassy in Washington and, according to FBI, he undertook a visit to Rochester Electronics Inc, Newburyport, Massachusetts, in February 2004 to witness the testing of 380 i960 microprocessors. He apparently cleared 377 of these and is said to have signed an “Inspection & Acceptance Certificate on behalf of Government of India.”

When contacted, Mukherjee declined to comment. “I don’t know what the documents are and I cannot comment on this issue,” he told The Sunday Express.

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