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Archives for September 2018

Get raped by 10 men, take Rs 20 lakh’: AAP’s Naveen Jaihind tells BJP leaders

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AAP’s Haryana unit chief Naveen Jaihind Tuesday provoked a controversy over the alleged gangrape of a girl in the state, saying he will give Rs 20 lakh to any BJP leader who gets sexually assaulted by 10 people.

Jaihind, the husband of Delhi Commission for Women chairperson Swati Maliwal, made the remarks while condemning the BJP government in Haryana for giving only Rs 2 lakh as compensation to the Rewari gang rape victim.

The Aam Aadmi Party leader alleged that BJP government in the state has completely failed on the law and order and women safety front.

The 19-year-old rape victim’s family had Saturday decided to return a cheque of Rs 2 lakh handed over to them by officials under the Haryana Victim Compensation Scheme, 2013.

“Is a woman’s honours worth Rs 2 lakh?” Jaihind told reporters in Rohtak. “Be ashamed, chief minister ‘sahab’.”

“We will give Rs 20 lakh to any BJP leader who gets raped by 10 people. Does woman’s honour have a value? (BJP ka koyee neta dus logon say ku-karam karvaye 20 lakh hum denge unko, arrey izzat ki koyee keemat hote hai kya),” he said.

When contacted, the AAP leader said he stands by his comments.

“I stand by what I have said. You cannot disrespect any woman in society. The victim or her family are not asking for money, all they want is justice,” he said over the phone.

He said the gang rape incident was very unfortunate. “But what happened in this case. The victim is made to run from pillar to post to get her complaint registered. Instead of acting against the culprits, the victim is harassed. While the family is demanding justice, you are handing them a cheque of Rs 2 lakh, which they don’t want. Isn’t it like rubbing salt on their wounds?” Jaihind asked.

“So many crimes against women are taking place in Haryana, but the chief minister has become a ‘Dhritarashtra’. The government has completely failed. It is like the Kauravas are ruling the state,” he said.

Activists lashed out at Jaihind for making the “insensitive” remarks.

Women rights activist Shabnam Hashmi said the comments were “very obnoxious and irresponsible”.

“This shows the patriarchal mindset of these leaders who consider women an object,” she said.

Annie Raja, National Federation of Indian Women’s general secretary, said it is a “criminal opinion”.

“He is trying to take political mileage out of the situation. These people do not consider women equal beings. After a few days, they apologise and escape by making such statements,” she said.

The 19-year-old woman, a Class 12 topper from Rewari, was abducted from a bus stop in Mahendragarh district Wednesday. She was allegedly drugged and gang raped in an agricultural field, police had said.

Police have arrested three persons, including one of the prime accused, in connection with the incident. Two key accused are on the run.

PTI

Pakistan bat, Bumrah and Pandya return

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Pakistan have won the toss and have opted to bat first vs India. Jasprit Bumrah and Hardik Pandya return to the playing XI in place of Khaleel Ahmed and Shardul Thakur.
This is the same surface on which the India-Hong Kong game was played but there doesn’t seem to be any signs of wear and tear. It will be a slow pitch still but the batsmen should enjoy batting on it. The spinners might get a bit of help and the pacers with the new ball. Overall, a really good deck to bat on says Sunil Gavaskar

India and Pakistan last met in the Champions Trophy final in England in 2017. India have won three of their last 5 matches while Pakistan have won all their last 5 ODIs.

Pakistani troops slit BSF jawan’s throat, high alert sounded along border

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Pakistani troops have slit the throat of a BSF jawan after fatally shooting him along the international border (IB) near Jammu, officials said on Wednesday.

The brutal and “unprecedented” incident that took place in the Ramgarh sector on Tuesday has prompted the security forces to issue a “high alert” across the IB and Line of Control (LoC) even as the Border Security Force (BSF) has lodged a strong complaint with its counterparts — the Pakistan Rangers.

Official sources said the body of Head Constable Narender Kumar also bore three bullet wounds and it could only be retrieved from a spot ahead of the Indo-Pak fence after over six hours as the Pakistani side “did not respond” to the calls to maintain the sanctity of the frontier and ensure that the BSF search parties were not fired upon.

The Pakistan Rangers, the sources said, was asked to take part in a joint patrolling to trace the missing jawan, but they only came up to a certain point and cited waterlogging problems in the area that prevented them from undertaking a coordinated action.

The BSF then waited for the sun to set and launched a “risky operation” to bring the jawan’s body back to the post by “late evening”.
Officials in the security establishment said the incident of brutality with the jawan, probably a first at the IB, was taken “very seriously” by the government and the Ministry of External Affairs and the Director General of Military Operations (DGMO) were also expected to take up the issue with their Pakistani counterparts.

They added that since the BSF patrol party that went ahead of the fence to cut the tall “sarkanda” (elephant) grass was first fired upon at 10.40 am on Tuesday, hectic phone calls and communication exchanges went on from the Indian side to across the border in order to locate the jawan, who was first declared missing.

While the BSF did not comment on the developments, sources said the force had alerted all its formations along the IB and informed the Army to be vigilant at the LoC.

“The body of the jawan bears three bullet injuries and his throat has been slit. This is an unprecedented action that has happened with the Indian forces along the IB and the Pakistani troopers are behind this. The BSF and other forces will undertake a counter-action at a suitable time,” an official said.

The jawan was killed on the spot after he was hit by a fatal sniper shot from across the border, he added.

The BSF’s Jammu frontier had yesterday issued a statement on the incident but did not mention anything about the hacking.

“A BSF party that was on domination patrolling ahead of the fence was fired upon. The BSF troops immediately took position and retaliated but the enemy bullets hit a jawan. The area on the Pakistani side has a protective bundh close to the IB,” the force had said in the statement.

It had added that the area on the Indian side was undulated, marshy and had a thick “sarkanda” growth that made tracing the location of the felled jawan difficult.

The incident came a day after Home Minister Rajnath Singh inaugurated the maiden “smart fence” project of the BSF in Jammu on Monday that aims to deploy smart technology and gadgets to secure the vulnerable patches on the Indo-Pak border.

PTI

1,420 Central Acts repealed by Modi government: RTI response

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Prime Minister Narendra Modi-led government at the Centre has done away with 1,420 laws, considered “redundant and obsolete”, in the past four years, a reply to a query under the RTI Act has revealed.

As per the information provided by the Public Information Officer (PIO) of the Legislative Department to Lucknow-based activist Nutan Thakur, 1,420 Central laws have been repealed since 2014.

The information says that initially 35 Acts were repealed through the Repealing and Amending Act, 2015. This was followed by 90 Acts being repealed in 2015 itself and 1,050 Acts in 2016.

In 2017, 245 Acts were repealed.

The reply to the RTI reveals that the Acts were repealed on the basis of a report by the Law Commission and a two-member committee constituted by the Prime Minister’s Office, along with comments from various ministries and departments.

(IANS)

Congress party will be finalised the CM name after election

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The Congress would not name the Chief Ministerial candidate in poll-bound Telangana, where it would fight the Assembly elections jointly with the TDP, CPI and Telangana Jana Samithi, a key party leader said Wednesday. The AICC In-charge of Telangana, R C Khuntia maintained that the usual practice in the Congress was not to name the party’s Chief Ministerial candidate before any Assembly election.

“TPCC (Telangana Pradesh Congress Committee) President, Uttam Kumar Reddy will lead the campaign but the Chief Ministerial candidate will be finalised after the election,” Khuntia told media here. “It will be decided after the election results come out, with the views of MLAs, in consultation with our President Rahul Gandhi”, he said.

Telangana Assembly was dissolved on September six — more than eight months ahead of the expiry of its term — on the recommendation of (now) Caretaker Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao, who opted to go for early elections.

The Election Commission is yet to come out with the poll schedule for the State. The Congress which won 21 seats in the 119-member Assembly in the 2014 elections with a vote share of more than 25 per cent, has since struck an understanding with the TDP, the CPI and TJS of Prof M Kodandaram to fight the election jointly.

“Seat sharing details have not been finalised but we have agreed to fight jointly,” Khuntia said. “We will have a common agenda, and also some strategy to campaign jointly,” he added. According to Khuntia, winnability of the alliance partners would decide as to who would get how many seats to contest.

“It’s not the question of numbers; it’s a question of winnability”, he said, adding, while the Congress is the major partner, the three other parties would get “preference” in segments where they are in a better position. The TDP fought the last election in alliance with the BJP, won 15 seats and had a close to 15 per cent vote-share.

PTI

CELEBRATIONS OF GANESH CHATHURTHI

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By Ayesha Fathima Correspanding with Nasheman Weekly resident of kammanahalli Bangalore,

Ganesh Chaturthi also known as Vinayaka Chaturthi or Vinayaka Chavithi is a Hindu festival celebrating the birth of Ganesha it is a ten-day festival, it starts on the fourth day of Hindu Lunisolar calendar month Bhadrapada, which typically falls in the months of August or September of the Gregorian calendar.

The festival is marked with the installation of Ganesha clay idols privately in homes, or publicly on elaborate pandals Observations include chanting of Vedic hymns & Hindu texts such as Ganapati Upanishad, prayers and vrata (fasting) Offerings and prasadam from the daily prayers is distributed from the pandal to the community include sweets such as modaka believed to be a favorite of Lord Ganesha .

Public preparations for the celebrations begin months in advance local Mandapa or Pandal’s are usually funded either from donations by local residents or hosted by businesses or community organizations.
At home, the festival preparation includes purchases such as puja items or accessories few days in advance and booking the ganesha murti as early as a month beforehand (from local artisans). The murti is brought home either a day before or on the day of the ganesh chaturthi families decorate a small, clean portion of the house with flowers and other colourful items before installing the idol.
When the Murti is installed, it & its shrine are decorated with flowers and other materials. On the day of the festival, the ceremonial installation of the clay murti (idol) is done along with chants of holy mantras and pooja including bhajans during a certain auspicious period of the day.
A priest performs Prana Pratishtha to invite Ganesha like a guest this is followed by the 16-step Shodashopachara ritual (Sanskrit: Shodash Upachara process) during which coconut, jaggery, modaks, durva grass and red hibiscus (Jaswand) flowers are offered to the idol. Depending on the region and time zone, the ceremony commences with hymns from the Rigveda, the Ganapati Atharvashirsa, the Upanishads and the Ganesha stotra (prayer) from the Narada Purana are chanted.

In Maharashtra as well as Goa Aartis are performed with friends and family, typically in the morning and evening the festival ends on the tenth day , the idol is then carried in a public procession with music & group chanting, then immersed in a nearby body of water such as a river or ocean.
This year Ganesh Chaturthi celebrations have started with a positive note when it comes to saving water bodies ,
According to the Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara palike (BBMP) which oversees Ganesh Chaturthi idol immersion activities the number of plaster of Paris ( pop) idols have reduced with people going for clay and Eco friendly idols a senior BBMP official at yediyur lake a major location for immersing idols stated that only 6000 of the 52,009 idols immersed at yediyur lake were made of POP “However we have to wait and see whether the same trend continues for the on coming days ” he added.
Inorder to help in the immersion of idols BBMP has made artificial tanks ( kalyanis) near the city near 22 lakes , lakes with these facilities are yediyur lake , kaikondahalli lake , Doddakenahalli kere, kasavanahalli lake ,Devarbessanahalli lake,muneekokalu Kere , Dorekere, singasandra lake , Herohalli lake, mallathahalli lake , ullala lake, darasarahalli ( chokkasandra lake) , Sankey tank ,ulsoor lake , kogilu lake, jakkur lake ( sampigehalli lake) ,Rachenahalli lake, pallanahalli lake, yelahanka kere, Attur lake, Allasandra lake and doddabomasandra lake.
For the devotees whose residential areas are away from these lakes mobile tankers and artificial tanks have been set up for Ganesha Immersion by BBMP & Karnataka state pollution control board and necessary precautions like encouraging people to opt for Eco friendly Ganesha’s , arificial tanks for immersion of idols and creation of awareness among people to opt for idols made from natural colors which does not pollute water, are taken to ensure a safe Ganesh chathurthi.

D K Shivakumar set up extensive network to transport, utilise unaccounted cash: ED

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The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has registered a money laundering case against Karnataka minister D K Shivakumar and few others on the basis of an alleged tax evasion and hawala transactions case, officials said.
The agency has booked Shivakumar, Haumanthaiah, an employee at Karnataka Bhavan in New Delhi, and others under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), they said.
The case has been filed based on a charge sheet (prosecution complaint) filed by the Income Tax Department against him early this year before a special court in Bengaluru on charges of alleged tax evasion and hawala transactions worth crores.
The agency is expected to summon the accused soon for recording their statements.
The IT Department has accused Shivakumar and his associate S K Sharma of transporting huge amount of unaccounted cash on a regular basis through ‘hawala’ channels with help of three other accused.
As per facts and analysis of evidences, it is clear that accused number 1 (Shivakumar) has set up an extensive network of persons and premises across Delhi and Bengaluru in order to transport and utilise unaccounted cash,” the department had said.
Other accused are Sachin Narayan, Anjaneya Hanumanthaiah and N Rajendra, it said.
According to the tax department, Narayan is a business partner of Shivakumar and Sharma is the proprietor of Sharma Transports, which runs a fleet of luxury and passenger buses and provides transport services to various concerns and individuals on rental basis.
Haumanthaiah is an employee at Karnataka Bhavan in New Delhi, allegedly responsible for storing and handling unaccounted cash of Shivakumar in Delhi, it had said in the complaint.
Rajendra is a caretaker of Karnataka Bhavan and works for Sharma, besides looking after immovable properties of Shivakumar and Sharma, it said.
The IT department had alleged that all five accused conspired to evade tax. “The analysis of evidences shows that the Minister has set up an extensive network of persons and premises across Delhi and Bangalore in order to transport and utilise unaccounted cash,” it alleged.
He was allegedly involved in organised tax evasion as part of conspiracy by engaging others, the department said.
Unaccounted cash of approximately Rs 20 crore was found and seized during raids in New Delhi and Bengaluru last August which were directly relatable to Shivakumar, it had said.
Shivakumar has alleged that the IT department was targeting him and not letting him breathe but he would fight the case legally.
A special court had given Shivakumar a conditional bail in this case sometime back and the next date of hearing is September 20.
Shivakumar was instrumental in ensuring the safe stay of Gujarat Congress legislators in a Karnataka resort during Rajya Sabha polls last year amid allegations that the BJP was trying to poach them.

Jarkiholi brothers demand for Deputy CM post,

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Representation for Ballari in the cabinet, another minister from the ST community, keeping DK Shivakumar out of Belagavi and Ballari and, more importantly, deputy chief minister’s post for Ramesh Jarkiholi, according to sources, are the demands made by the Jarkiholi brothers to end the crisis that is threatening the survival of the coalition government.

While Ramesh and his brother Satish have acknowledged that they have made the first two demands, they have denied seeking the deputy CM’s post or mentioning about Shivakumar.

Sources close to the brothers, however, insist that Ramesh’s demand to the coalition is to match what the BJP has offered him — deputy chief minister’s post.

Despite CM HD Kumaraswamy himself directly intervening (he met both Ramesh and Satish at a hotel in Bengaluru) to solve the crisis, sources suggest that pacifying the brothers will take more time. Meanwhile, taking the ongoing drama to Delhi, Satish Jarkiholi left for the national capital for a meeting with the Congress high command on Wednesday. Incidentally, KPCC president Dinesh Gundu Rao, former CM Siddaramaiah and DyCM G Parameshwara are also scheduled to meet AICC chief Rahul Gandhi on Wednesday.
While Satish himself told the media that the meeting with Kumaraswamy was fruitful, sources close to the Congress MLA suggest otherwise.

“The meeting held by Kumaraswamy to broker truce was insignificant. The Jarkiholi brothers will take a final call on whether to remain with the Congress or not after they meet Rahul,” a source said.

While keeping Shivakumar away from Belagavi and Ballari politics is a priority for the duo and MLAs from Ballari, the offer made by BJP, according to sources, is lucrative enough for the brothers to demand the same from the Congress.
The demand, however, is likely to put the Congress in a spot with the JD(S) as their coalition agreement had rejected the idea of two DyCMs. Unseating Parameshwara to accommodate Ramesh is expected to lead to more trouble, pushing the party into further crisis.

Speaking to media after meeting CM, Satish said there was no request for the DyCM’s post.

“No such demands have been made. He (Ramesh) already has a portfolio,” he said.

Despite the crisis, Congress leaders maintained that all was well and said Wednesday’s meeting in Delhi was to discuss Legislative Council polls. “Only Siddaramaiah, Parameshwara and I are going to meet Rahul Gandhi to discuss bypolls to the Legislative Council,” said Dinesh Gundu Rao. He also said the final list of candidates can be expected by Thursday. But, Satish’s visit to Delhi at a time when three top leaders are also present there makes it evident that the political turmoil is likely to cloud the meeting with Rahul Gandhi.

At a time when speculations are rife that the Jarkiholi brothers are all set to cut off from the Congress, sources close to the family suggest that Ramesh’s dwindling financial status is one reason why he could switch over to the BJP. “Ramesh, after the assembly polls, has been facing financial difficulties and realises that he will not be able to gain anything from the Congress as long as it continues the coalition with the JD(S). To revive his financial status, he is keen to grab BJP’s offer without falling prey to Congress’ persuasions,” a source said.

PTI

Chicago Congress: Paeans to Hindu unity in shadow of ‘nemesis’ long deceased

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At its best, speeches at the recently concluded World Hindu Congress echoed the soaring spiritual ideals evoked by Swami Vivekananda in Chicago 125 years ago.

Even Mohan Bhagwat, Sarsangchanalak of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS), focused essentially on the need for unity and patience among Hindus while fighting obstacles, of which, he said, there would be many. The burden of excavating implied accusations in Bhagwat’s speech fell to his critics.

At the plenary session, the moderator requested speakers to address issues of conflict without naming the speakers or their organisations in the interest of harmony. Other speakers sought to unite the followers of all the great religions that took birth in India — Hinduism, Sikhism, Buddhism and Jainism.

Some of the speakers from Bhagwat to Swami Swaroopananda of the Chinmaya Mission, framed the issues before Hinduism in a moral paradigm. Ashwin Adhin, the Vice President of the Republic of Suriname, began his speech in chaste Hindi, later quoting cognitive scientist George Lakoff: “Facts matter immensely. But to be meaningful they have to be framed in terms of their moral importance.”

The dissonances, between the spiritual and the mundane, were to emerge later on the fringes of the seminars which were part of the Congress. Many of the delegates appropriated to themselves the mantle of a culture besieged by proselytising faiths. There were speakers who urged Hindus to have more children to combat their ‘dwindling population’. Posters warned Hindus of the dangers from ‘love jihad’ (Muslim men ‘enticing’ Hindu women).

In one of the sessions on the media, filmmaker Amit Khanna noted that religion had always played a prominent part in Indian cinema, starting with the earliest mythologicals. “Raja Harishchandra”, the first silent film, he said, was made by Dadasaheb Phalke in 1913. He sought to reassure the audience on the future of Hinduism. “Over 80 percent of Indians are Hindus,” he said adding: “Hinduism has survived many upheavals for thousands of years. Hinduism has never been endangered.”

Other speakers, lacking spiritual and academic pedigrees, drew on an arsenal of simulated anguish and simmering indignation.

The nuances of history pass lightly over the ferociously devout and it took little effort to pander to an aggravated sense of historical aggrievement.

At one of the debates, the mere mention of Jawaharlal Nehru, India’s first Prime Minister, elicited sniggers and boos. The speaker hinted at ‘Nehruvian socialism’ which had made the Indian economy a non-starter. He concluded with a coup de grace, to a standing ovation: “Nehru did not like anything Indian.”

The poet Rabindranath Tagore, who composed the Indian national anthem, had spoken of his vision of a country where the “clear stream of reason had not lost its way”. At some of the discussions, even the most indulgent observer would have been hard put to discern the stream of reason.

The image of a once great civilisation suppressed by a century of British rule and repeated plunder by invaders captured the imagination of many in the audience. Hanging above it all, like a disembodied spirit, was the so-called malfeasance of Nehru, the leader who had won the trust of Hindus only to betray them in the vilest manner.

These tortured souls would have been well advised to adopt a more holistic approach to Hinduism, and history, looking no further than Swami Vivekananda, who once said: “The singleness of attachment (Nishtha) to a loved object, without which no genuine love can grow, is very often also the cause of denunciation of everything else.”

Historians have informed us that Nehru preferred his father’s intellect over his mother’s tradition but he was never contemptuous of religion. While he undoubtedly felt that organised religion had its flaws, he opined that it supplied a deeply felt inner need of human nature while also giving a set of values to human life.

In private conversations some delegates spoke of how their America-born children had helped persuade them to drop their pathological aversion to gays and lesbians. Despite their acute wariness of perceived cultural subjugation, the irony was obviously lost on them that Article 377 of the Indian Penal Code,(which criminalises gay sex) recently overturned by the Indian Supreme Court, is a hangover from the Victorian British era-embodied in the Buggery Act of 1533.

In the face of the upcoming elections in the US, Congressman Raja Krishnamoorthi’s decision to speak at the conference was a political risk. With a newly energised political Left, even the perception of being linked with “fascist” or sectarian forces could be political suicide in the critical November elections. Despite vociferous appeals to disassociate himself from the Congress, Krishnamoorthi chose to attend.

“I decided I had to be here because I wanted to reaffirm the highest and only form of Hinduism that I have ever known and been taught — namely one that welcomes all people, embraces all people, and accepts all people, regardless of their faith. I reject all other forms. In short, I reaffirm the teaching of Swami Vivekananda,” Krishnamoorthi said.

Given the almost pervasive abhorrence of anything remotely Nehruvian among a section of the delegates, it was a revelation to hear the opinion of Dattatrey Hosable, the joint general secretary and second-in-command in the RSS hierarchy. Speaking on the promise of a newly-resurgent India, Hosable said in an interview to Mayank Chhaya, a local journalist-author-filmmaker: “A moment comes, which comes but rarely in history, when we step out from the old to the new — when an age ends, and when the soul of a nation, long suppressed, finds utterance.”

The quote is from Nehru’s famous Tryst with Destiny speech delivered to the Indian Constituent Assembly on the midnight of August 14, 1947 — proof, if any is needed, that the force of Nehru’s ideas can transcend one’s disdain of him.

AgustaWestland middleman Christian Michel to be extradited: Dubai court

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A Dubai court has ordered for the extradition of British national and alleged middleman Christian Michel in the Rs 3,600 crore AgustaWestland VVIP choppers deal case, official sources said late on Tuesday.

They said the court pronounced the judgement on Tuesday after India had officially made the request to the Gulf nation sometime back, based on the criminal investigations conducted in this case by the CBI and the Enforcement Directorate (ED).

The full contents of the order against Christian Michel James (54) are expected to be known by Wednesday as the legal pronouncement is in Arabic and is being translated in English at the behest of Indian authorities, they said.

The order is being seen as a major shot in the arm to the agencies– Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) and ED — probing the case.

The ED, in its charge sheet filed against Michel in June 2016, had alleged that he received EUR 30 million (about Rs 225 crore) from AgustaWestland. The money was nothing but “kickbacks” paid by the firm to execute the 12 helicopter deal in favour of the firm in “guise of” of genuine transactions for performing multiple work contracts in the country, it had said.

Michel is one of the three middlemen being probed in the case, besides Guido Haschke and Carlo Gerosa, by the ED and the CBI. Both the agencies have notified an Interpol red corner notice (RCN) against him after the court issued a non-bailable warrant against him.

Michel has been extensively interviewed by the Indian media in Dubai in the past and both the agencies want him to join the probe to take the case forward.

The ED had also brought on record, in the chargesheet, that the three middlemen “managed to” make inroads into the Indian Air Force (IAF) to influence the stand of the officials into reducing the service ceiling of the helicopters from 6,000 metres to 4,500 metres in 2005. AgustaWestland became eligible to supply a dozen helicopters for VVIP flying duties after this change.

The ED investigation found that remittances made by Michel through his Dubai-based firm Global Services to a media firm he floated in Delhi, along with two Indians, were made from the funds which he got from AgustaWestland through “criminal activity” and corruption being done in the chopper deal that led to the subsequent generation of proceeds of crime.

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

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