VVIP chopper scam: Court dismisses Ratul Puri's plea for cancellation of NBW

A Delhi court on Wednesday dismissed a petition moved by businessman Ratul Puri seeking cancellation of a non-bailable warrant (NBW) issued against him in a money laundering case connected to Rs 3,600-crore AgustaWestland VVIP chopper scam.

On August 9, Special Judge Arvind Kumar had allowed a plea of the Enforcement Directorate (ED), seeking issuance of an NBW against Puri. The agency had accused him of not joining the probe despite several summonses.

Puri, a nephew of Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Kamal Nath, had on August 16 filed the plea for cancellation of the NBW by contending that he is willing to join the probe.

The businessman had submitted that he sent a mail to the agency showing his willingness to join the investigation.

The court will hear tomorrow another application moved by Puri, challenging some of the grounds mentioned in the ED's application for issuance of the NBW.

The case pertains to alleged irregularities in the purchase of 12 VVIP choppers from Italy-based Finmeccanica's British subsidiary AgustaWestland.

The deal was scrapped by the NDA government in 2014 over the alleged breach of contractual obligations and charges of payment of kickbacks.

On Tuesday, Puri was sent to ED custody for six-days in a Rs 354-crore bank fraud case. He was arrested by the agency on Monday.