Sharad tells govt to reveal names of 'beneficiaries'

Demanding that the beneficiaries of bribes in the AgustaWestland VVIP helicopter purchase case be revealed immediately, JD-U leader Sharad Yadav on Friday said asking the CBI to investigate the case was like dropping the entire issue in a black hole.

"We know that bribes were given and we know who gave the bribes. The government should now tell us who received the bribes," Yadav said while raising the issue during the zero hour in the Lok Sabha.

"This CBI (investigation) is like 'andha kuan (blind well)," he said, when some MPs prompted the word 'black hole'. Yadav agreed and said that was the word he meant in English.

"Arrest the brokers involved in the AgustaWestland helicopter deal and do something so that such scams do not happen in future," the NDA convenor said.

Yadav said Defence Minister A K Antony was busy defending his position and image, wherein he should have done something to ensure that truth comes out.

Meanwhile, AgustaWestland has sent its response to the show-cause notice issued to it by the Defence Ministry, claiming that it had not indulged in any unlawful practice.

Friday was the last date for the company to respond to the show-cause notice. The Defence Ministry had asked the company to state why the Rs 3,600-crore contract should not be cancelled.

In its response, the firm has said its conduct has been fully compliant with the Indian laws and the contract it had signed with the Indian government.

The ministry said it will take a few days in studying the response of the company before deciding on the fate of the deal.

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