V P Singh signed Bofors LoI: CBI

NEW DELHI, April 16: Former Prime Minister V P Singh was one of the signatories to the letter of intent LoI issued to the Swedish Bofors c...

NEW DELHI, April 16: Former Prime Minister V P Singh was one of the signatories to the letter of intent LoI issued to the Swedish Bofors company for supply of four hundred 155 mm Howitzer guns in his capacity as finance minister during the regime of late prime minister Rajiv Gandhi.

In an affidavit filed before, Delhi High Court on April 13, the CBI stated that Singh as finance minister signed the LoI on March 13, 1986, few days before the deal was granted to A B Bofors. The contract for the supply of 400 Bofors guns was awarded to the Swedish firm by then prime minister Rajiv Gandhi on March 15, 1986 after a meeting with his Swedish counterpart Carlsson.

A commission of 7.34 million US dollars was alleged to have been paid to A E Services, a front company of Italian businessman Ottavio Quattrocchi whom the CBI investigation has found to have had intimate terms with late Rajiv Gandhi and his family, for tilting the Rs 1437.72 crore contract in favour of the A B Bofors company. V P Singh signed the LoIjust before Rajiv Gandhi put his seal of approval on March 14, 1986. V P Singh8217;s National Front popularity sky rocketed in the late 19808217;s after he quit the Congress and launched a crusade against Rajiv Gandhi and his government on the Bofors issue. The result was the Congress faced a severe drubbing in the 1989 Lok Sabha elections and Singh became the PM. The CBI said an unusual haste was apparent from the fact that after the meeting of the negotiating committee on March 12, 1986 in which the issuance of LoI to M/s Bofors was recommended, a note was prepared by the joint secretary on the same date for approval of the ministers of state for defence Sukh Ram and Arun Singh, the finance minister V P Singh and prime minister Rajiv Gandhi and the same was forwarded by the officers and ministers within two days. 8220;After the note of March 12, 1986 of the joint secretary, there was a flurry of activity involving officials of six departments 8211; ministry of defence, defence finance, defence production, economicaffairs, ministry of finance and the prime ministers office 8211; acting on the file and eleven signatures of officials and ministers are available in the file in a matter of less than 48 hours,8221; the affidavit said.

The affidavit was filed by Keshav Mishra, deputy superintendent of police of CBI, through CBI counsel A K Dutt in opposition to Quattrocchi8217;s petition seeking immediate quashing of a non-bailable warrant and the Interpol red alert against him.

The CBI also charged substantive offences against Martin Ardbo, president of M/s A B Bofors.