Supreme Court dismisses plea challenging Delhi HC relief to Hinduja brothers in Bofors case

The case stems from the Bofors scandal involving the Rs 1,437 crore howitzer gun deal signed between India and Swedish arms manufacturer Bofors in 1986

NEW DELHI: The Supreme Court on Friday dismissed a plea challenging the Delhi High Court’s 2005 decision that had quashed criminal proceedings against the Hinduja brothers in the Bofors payoff case, effectively bringing an end to the long-pending appeal filed by advocate Ajay K Agrawal.A bench of Justices JB Pardiwala and Vinod K Chandran refused to adjourn the matter and declined to entertain further submissions during the hearing.The petitioner, appearing virtually, sought four weeks’ time to delete the names of respondents who had died. “I’m seeking four weeks’ time for deletion of the names, as respondent nos. 1 and 4 have expired,” the advocate told the court.Justice Pardiwala questioned the continued pendency of the matter and remarked, “What is all this about the Hinduja brothers and the CBI?”When informed that the Delhi High Court had exonerated the accused and quashed the proceedings, Justice Pardiwala said, “All proceedings were quashed. What is this? How many years have passed?”The petitioner responded that “The deal occurred in 1986.”As another counsel attempted to make submissions, Justice Pardiwala made it clear that the court would not postpone the matter. “No question of adjournment. It is a 2018 matter,” he said.Counsel appearing in the case argued that a separate appeal filed by the Central Bureau of Investigation had earlier been dismissed by the Supreme Court on the ground that the agency was already a respondent in the present petition and could raise all its arguments here.

The case stems from the Bofors scandal involving the Rs 1,437 crore howitzer gun deal signed between India and Swedish arms manufacturer Bofors in 1986. The CBI had alleged that the Hinduja brothers received millions in illegal payoffs linked to the contract.According to the investigation, Bofors paid nearly Rs 64 crore in kickbacks, with secret Swiss bank code names including Lotus and Tulip allegedly linked to the Hinduja family. The Delhi High Court, however, quashed the criminal proceedings against the brothers in 2005, a decision that remained under challenge until the Supreme Court dismissed the appeal on Friday.