Bofors scam created political sensation in Rajiv Era has been given final burial salute with Solicitor General praying apex court to drop the cases against Italian businessman Ottavio Quattrocchi in the Bofors pay-off issue. Indian government has informed Supreme Court on Tuesday through its Solicitor General Gopal Subramamanium of finally dropping ,withdrawing cases against Quattrochi.
Bofors scandal was worth Rs 150 billion,historical scam came to light during Vishwanath Pratap Singh's tenure as defence minister, revealed through investigative journalism by Chitra Subramaniam of Indian express and N. Ram of the The Hindu.
The name of the middleman associated with the scandal was Ottavio Quattrocchi, an Italian businessman who represented the petrochemicals firm Snamprogetti.The government has told the
Supreme Court that it has decided to withdraw the cases against Italian businessman Ottavio Quattrochi as there is no evidence against him. Mr Quattrochi is accused in the Bofors scam.
The CBI also told the Apex Court that efforts to extradite Mr Quattrochi have also failed.
Congress says CBI's views must be respected as the case could not be dragged due to legal validity. Party spokesman Mr Manish Tiwari said the case without any legal validity should not be dragged. BJP has accused the government of saving Quattrochi. BJP leader Mr Ravi Shankar
Prasad alleged that the government machinery has been used to save Quattrochi and to bury the case against him.
CBI has asked the international agency to take off Italian businessman Ottavio Quattrocchi, an accused in the Rs 64 crore Bofors payoff scam, from the Red Corner notice list in which he had been put at India's behest.CBI also took Quattrocchi's off its website.
A historical case which changed the destiny of Country, Congress emerging from the major player in Indian Politics to moderate national party.
Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi friends and others were accused of receiving kickbacks from Bofors AB for winning a bid to supply India's 155 mm field howitzer.
Bofors scam influence not only of the corruption in high places but ignited questioned the role of prevailing system,the rampant corruption in India which does not allow the development to trickle down to its roots in major part of rural India and remain within the elite class. The Values,ethics, standards that once leader set pre-indpendence saw their nosedive and people who had unflinching support ot their dear Rajiv reached its low ebb.
Voters,supporters of Nehru-Gandhi dynasty thereafter shrinked in such low spirit that directly led to the defeat of Gandhi's ruling Indian National Congress party in the November 1989 in general elections.
Congress the oldest party to govern this country for more than four decades lost its popularity and since then it has not crossed its seats in parliament from more than 200.
CBI also told the Apex Court that efforts to extradite Mr Quattrochi have also failed.
Reacting to the development, the Congress says CBI’s views must be respected as the case could not be dragged due to legal validity.
Party spokesman Mr Manish Tiwari said the case without any legal validity should not be dragged. The Bofors curtain is off and Q- matter quells.E channels made exit story with BJP going in offence and Congress making all efforts to defnce the dead case.
BJP has accused the government of saving Quattrochi. BJP leader Mr Ravi Shankar Prasad alleged that the government machinery has been used to save Quattrochi and to bury the case against him.
When on meeting in 1986,the Janata Dal Party President Chandershekhar,asked about the role of opposition when Congress has more than 412 members in Lokh Sabha.
He replied,”It is unfortunate for the nation beacuse the political acitivity and thought process gets stagnant.”
One quipped ,What Next, he said, “There is rampant corruption in high places and political acitivity has come to stand still for which we shall launch public dharnas at boat club”.
Rajiv’s federal ministers overheard the Janata party’s national issue which were waiting to bring scam in Public domain before next General Elections. Next best minister made it a history of India from one party rule to multi-party system.
Janata Dal U said “CBI is used as a political tool by the Congress government and therefore whenever it comes to power, the Bofors pay-off case gets weakened,” senior JD(U) leader and spokesperson Arun Srivastav said.
CPI M said Bofors payoff case paint intent of government, “With this latest act, the cover-up of the Bofors bribery case is now complete,” said the party in a statement here.“The decision of the central government to withdraw the case against Ottavio Quattrocchi comes in the wake of prolonged efforts to scuttle the case,” the CPI-M said.The party alleged that the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) was prevented from “pursuing the case seriously”.
Q matter,the Supreme Court will hear the matter on December 11.On September 8, the CBI asked fortnight before a Delhi court for exploring the options available to it in the Bofors payoff case after the withdrawal of Red Corner notice against Italian Businessman Ottavio Quattrocchi first released in in their websites.
What Tweeter has to say:
Intellectuals have an important role to play the history to its better and humane side of the story,their toys in form of ideas break in with collision of poor performance of the system is hallmark of another ideation sprouting in the minds of scholars finding another path of glorious structures.
All those with a sense of history, all those who fought the battle against political corruption will be saddened by Q being let off.
Bofors also showed how all parties protect each other.
VP Singh who rode Bofors to power refused to conclude the case, punish the guilty.
Bofors was not the biggest case of corruption. It was a symbol of the worst evil in our political system. Q was its dirty face.
How can you claim to fight corruption when you shut down the most famous case of corruption in Indian history n allow Q to go free.
In power VP Singh used Bofors as a political tool but never saw it thru to its conclusion. Now the Congress have shamelessly buried it.
This whole Quatrocchi thing is Kafkaesque. Now the Govt has dropped its case against Q! Bofors buried finally. Corruption wins.