Name Agusta deal culprits in two months, Congress dares government

The Congress on Friday dared the Modi government to reveal within two months the names of those who took kickbacks in the AgustaWestland deal.

"If the government has the guts, they should come out with the truth in two months, instead of issuing threats. Who has taken the money and how much? They should announce the names in the monsoon session of parliament," Congress leader Ghulam Nabi Azad told the media in parliament complex here.

Azad, who is leader of opposition in the Rajya Sabha, reasoned that leaders of the then United Progressive Alliance government won't have ordered the Central Bureau of Investigation probe into the deal had they accepted bribes.

"If any UPA leader had taken kickbacks in the AgustaWestland deal, would they have ordered a CBI probe or initiated Enforcement Directorate investigation? Would they have cancelled the deal? Would they have recovered the bank guarantee or the advance money? Would they have started the process of blacklisting the company?" Azad asked.

The Congress leader said that the then Congress-led government at the Centre tried to catch the culprits, and added that those who did any wrong should be punished.

"If they (government) are really sincere in the case, why aren't they completing the investigations? They have all the investigating agencies under them," he added.

--IANS

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