360 degree: Big loots, bigger escapes

With the Parliament session turning stormy over the VVIP helicopter scam, one view is that the government may take the probe to its logical conclusion. The counterview is that the turbulence will die down after nailing the uniformed blokes and a few others. After all, decades after the Rs 60 crore Bofors scam, what is Rs 100-120 crore for the big fish; just pocket money, right?

The Intelligence agencies themselves are not free from corruption and go by diktats of their political masters, either because of the loyalty they developed over long years, and/or in the hope of possible future benefits. Take the jottings on Haschke’s diary, that has references to defence secretary, joint secretary (Air), AFA, DG Acquisition and CVC, beside others, which were available for years. Yet, when the CBI team visited Italy during the UPA period, they ignored this aspect altogether, and focused attention only on the role of IAF officers and some others.

Now, while the former IAF chief and vice-chief are being grilled, no bureaucrat has been summoned by CBI or ED. There have been numerous articles and hints that the role of Shashi Kant Sharma, who was made CAG under exceptional circumstances by the UPA, is central to the ongoing probe. But, there is no move yet to question him. Sharma, considered indispensable by the Congress in MoD, has the dubious distinction of being the DG Acquisitions in the Ministry of Defence during the signing of the VVIP chopper deal. The Defence Secretary, during the closure of Army’s Technical Support Division through a sham board, and during the rumour of an army coup, ignored the SC order to appear in court personally over the issue of contempt of court. That was for not executing SC orders on Same Rank, Same Pay in his capacity as Defence Secretary.

But why Sharma alone? The UPA government had ordered no government official could be questioned by intelligence agencies without government approval. In the VVIP chopper scam, lowering of the QR was impossible, even as it was done arbitrarily by IAF. Mystery remains as to who conducted trials abroad on representative helicopters. Was B.V. Wanchoo, director of SPG, on board during the trials? MoD has reportedly asked CBI and ED to hasten the probe, but it is to be seen if all involved would be interrogated and prosecuted if found guilty.

Defence scams in independent India were initiated by V.K. Krishna Menon through the infamous Jeep Scandal. But Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru, instead of sacking him, made him the Defence Minister. The bulk of the British era ICS that stayed back in India were in MoD, basking in the Nehru-Menon disdain for the military. The Defence Secretary, not Defence Minister, continues to be charged with the nation’s defence. The designation of Army, Navy, Air Force headquarters as attached offices gave the bureaucrats unlimited authority without accountability. Scams occurred periodically; Jeeps, Bofors, HDW, Coffingate, Tehelka, Barak missiles, Denel, Eurocopter, NTRO in 2007, AgustaWestland, Tata Trucks, Rolls Royce engines, you name it. Some were not probed, some were frozen midway, and others probed selectively. No politician or bureaucrat was ever questioned, leave alone being prosecuted.

In the Coffingate, the Defence Secretary was simply moved to another lucrative appointment. A few army officers were prosecuted in the Tehelka scam but the politicians and bureaucrats were never ever questioned. If the jottings of Haschke with regard to the AgustaWestland scam are probed, what?

In the Purulia drop, Kim Davy (real name Niels Christian Nielsen) claimed it was a Congress conspiracy in conjunction with RAW and MI5 to overthrow the Communist government in West Bengal. But where was the question of questioning any politician? A veteran ambassador, originally IAS, says when had been posted to MoD, his first brief was to forget all else, just concentrate on what procurements are in the pipeline and how much money could be made.

The biggest defence scam in India is the governmental defence-industrial complex. It ignored its mission and has ensured steady import of 70 per cent of our defence needs despite the joint secretaries of MoD being on all the boards of DRDO-DPSUs-OF. Compare the successful flight of the Japanese stealth fighter just seven years after the launch of the project in 2009, with the fate of our Tejas, even as 70 per cent of imported assemblies and parts are not fielded even after three decades. Sure, Make in India is an excellent initiative. But much more facilitation is needed to break the mafia’s stranglehold.

Isn’t it a shame that despite best efforts, FDI in defence has attracted only Rs 1.12 crore under the new government? DPP 2016 has been issued in incomplete form without even benchmarking strategic partners. The MoD has not been able to define what is meant by state-of-the-art over the past two years, in the absence of which all major cases involving FDI in defence beyond 49 per cent are stuck with the FIPB. The private sector is not wholly convinced they would get a level playing field.

On face value, the Modi government is showing a resolve to clean up defence. They must go for the jugular speedily in the current probe and likewise go after other scams too. It is equally vital to induct military professionals in MoD and the governmental defence-industrial complex.