A judicial request has been made to the United States by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) following sending a Letter Rogatory (LR), requesting information from the private investigator MicChael Hershman. Hershman had expressed willingness to share with the Indian agencies significant details about the Rs 64 crore Bofors bribery scandal of the 1980s.
Notably, an LR is a written request sent by the court of one country to the court of another country to obtain assistance in the investigation. According to the media reports, the process to send the LR was initiated on October 14 2024, and it was sent in February following approval from the court concerned.
The CBI has also informed the special court hearing the agency’s plea for further investigation into the alleged bribery case about the recent developments. India signed a Rs 1,437 crore deal on March 18, 1986, with Swedish arms manufacturer AB Bofors for the supply of 400 155 mm Howitzer guns for the Army.
On April 16, 1987, a Swedish radio channel alleged that the company had bribed top Indian politicians and defence personnel to secure the contract. In the late 1980s, the scandal rocked the Rajiv Gandhi-led government. On January 22, 1990, the CBI lodged an FIR against the then Bofors president Martin Ardbo, alleged middleman Win Chadda, and the Hinduja brothers for criminal conspiracy, cheating and forgery.
Between 1982 and 1987, certain public servants and private people in India and abroad had entered into a criminal conspiracy in pursuance of which the offences of bribery, corruption, cheating and forgery were committed.
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