New Delhi: The troubled VVIP chopper purchase from an Italian firm has also come under the scanner of the Enforcement Directorate which is expected to register a criminal case of money laundering to probe allegations of kickbacks in the Rs 3600 deal.
The ED started going through documents it had received from a US Attorney Edmond Allen who was earlier associated with arms dealer Abhishek Verma which had suggested that kickbacks have been paid in the chopper deal by the firm AgustaWestland, the agency sources said.
The references about the firm, which is in the news because of the arrest of Giuseppe Orsi-- the CEO of Italian defence and aerospace giant Finmeccanica-- were in respect of alleged purchases of utility and some variants of military choppers for Indian defence and security requirements.
Sources said the ED will take a call whether to register a case under the stringent clauses of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) in this deal once the CBI files an FIR and also will take in account its ongoing investigation under the Foreign Exchange Management Act (FEMA).
PTI
First Published: Wednesday, February 13, 2013, 20:08