Former Goa CM Digambar Kamat granted anticipatory bail in Louis Berger bribery case

On July 21, the Crime Branch registered an FIR against unknown ministers in the 2010 Goa government, and company officials, and commenced its probe. On 6 August, former Goa PWD Minister Churchill Alemao was questioned for his alleged involvement in the Louis Berger bribery case. Besides Alemao, former Chief Minister Digambar Kamat is also under the scanner. Both Alemao and Kamat have denied all allegations against them.

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Kamat had filed for an anticipatory bail to seek protection from arrest. In his application, he claimed that he had nothing to do with the case as he was not holding the top post when the water project at the centre of the scandal was conceived and the related contract signed. “Kamat was not the Chief Minister when the project was conceived between 2004-05 and a consultancy contract for it signed in 2007. There is more to it than meets the eye. I had nothing to do with the entire scope of (project) negotiation,” Kamat’s counsel Surendra Desai told the Court during the course of the arguments.

The defense counsel also claimed that the statements recorded against his client had been doctored. “They catch hold of an old employee (of Louis Berger) and doctor his statements submitted before a Magistrate”, he added.

The Louis Berger Group bribery case came to light when the company admitted to violations of the US Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) and agreed to pay a penalty of $17.1 million to resolve charges that it bribed foreign officials before the US Justice Department in July. Besides India, the company was involved in malpractices in Indonesia, Vietnam and Kuwait, the Justice Department said.

In India, the company is accused of bribing officials to win two major water projects in Goa and Guwahati. The beneficiaries of the $ 9,76,630 paid for the Goa project in August 2010 allegedly included a minister.

The Louis Berger Group company was part of a consultancy consortium with two Japanese firms and an Indian partner appointed to manage the $ 311 million Goa water supply and sewerage project awarded in 2009.

In a related development, the court also granted bail to the alleged hawala dealer, Raichand Soni who was arrested by the police earlier this month. Soni has been granted bail on certain conditions including surrendering his passport before the police.