Bofors pay-off case: SC dismisses plea challenging Hinduja brothers' acquittal
What's the story
The Supreme Court on Thursday dismissed a plea challenging the 2005 acquittal of Hinduja brothers and Swedish arms manufacturer AB Bofors in the Bofors pay-off case. The bench, headed by Justices JB Pardiwala and K Vinod Chandran, refused to grant more time to advocate and BJP leader Ajay K Agrawal. Agrawal had challenged the Delhi High Court's verdict, which quashed all charges against the accused.
Scandal impact
How the Bofors scandal rocked the Rajiv Gandhi government
The Bofors case, involving a ₹1,437 crore deal for 400 howitzers with AB Bofors in 1986, had rocked the Rajiv Gandhi government.
It was alleged that kickbacks were paid to Indian politicians and defense officials.
The scandal came to light after Swedish Radio reported on it in April 1987.
The controversy is said to have played a role in the Congress party losing power during the 1989 elections.
Legal proceedings
What is the Bofors case?
The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) registered an FIR in January 1990, alleging criminal conspiracy, cheating, forgery, and corruption against several accused, including former Bofors president Martin Ardbo and alleged middleman Win Chadha.
The CBI later filed charge sheets against several accused, including Italian businessman Ottavio Quattrocchi.
The Hinduja brothers were added to the charge sheet in October 2000.
However, the prosecution slowly unraveled with Justice RS Sodhi quashing all charges against them in May 2005.
Appeal dismissal
Supreme Court had refused to entertain CBI's appeal in 2018
The Supreme Court had refused to entertain the CBI's appeal against the 2005 judgment in November 2018.
The court was not convinced by the agency's delay of 4,522 days in approaching it.
It had also questioned Agrawal's locus in January 2018, asking how a private individual could maintain an appeal when the investigating agency itself hadn't challenged the acquittal.
Case closure
Final legal closure for the Bofors case
The Bofors case has now reached its final legal closure after Agrawal's appeal dismissal. The scandal has seen several key figures either being discharged or passing away during the prolonged proceedings.
Former PM Rajiv Gandhi was cleared of criminal culpability in February 2004 by another Delhi High Court judge, Justice JD Kapoor.
Italian businessman Ottavio Quattrocchi was discharged by a Delhi trial court in 2011 and died in 2013.
Additional details
Investigation cost exchequer nearly ₹250cr
The dismissal of the appeal marks the end of the litigation arising out of the High Court's May 2005 judgment, in which Justice Sodhi quashed all charges against Srichand, Gopichand and Prakash Hinduja as well as the Bofors company.
The court strongly criticized the CBI's handling of the prosecution, observing that the investigation had cost the exchequer nearly ₹250 crore.