Court to decide Quattrocchi's fate tomorrow

New Delhi (PTI) The fate of the over
two-decade-old, politically sensitive Bofors payoff case
against Italian businessman Ottavio Quattrocchi is likely to
be decided on Monday by a Delhi court.
Chief Metropolitan Magistrate Vinod Yadav will pronounce
his order on Central Bureau of Investigation's plea seeking
withdrawal of the case against 70-year-old Quattrocchi, who
has never appeared before any court in India to face trial.
The CBI had, in October 2009, sought permission of the
court to withdraw the case against Quattrocchi, saying that
his continued prosecution was "unjustified" in the light of
various factors including the agency's failed attempts to
extradite him.
The CBI had failed twice in extraditing him -- first
from Malaysia in 2003 and then from Argentina in 2007.
A charge sheet was filed against Quattrocchi for
allegedly receiving a payoff for brokering the Bofors gun
deal.
The CBI had registered a criminal case on January 20,
1990 to probe who were the beneficiaries of the payoffs in the
1986 Bofors gun deal.
After completing its probe, the agency had filed two
charge sheets in the case -- first on October 22, 1999 and the
other on October 9, 2000.
The CBI had contended that there was no change in the
government's stand on withdrawing the case against Quattrocchi
in the wake of the Income Tax Appellate Tribunal (ITAT) order,
which had said that kickbacks of Rs 61 crore were paid to late
Win Chaddha and Quattrocchi in the Howitzer gun deal.
"The continuance of prosecution against Quattrocchi will
be unjustified. It is considered expedient in the interest of
justice that the proceedings against him should not be
continued and be withdrawn," CBI had pleaded in its nine-page
application seeking withdrawal of case.
Advocate Ajay Agrawal, who has been pursuing the case in
the Supreme Court and had approached the trial court against
CBI's move to seek a closure of the case, has contended in the
court that the Centre and the agency were trying to close the
case despite having sufficient evidence against Quattrocchi.
The plea was countered by the CBI which said it was
difficult to secure presence of Quattrocchi for prosecution
and, moreover, all other accused are either dead or charges
against them have been quashed by the Delhi High Court.