CBI closes Air India corruption case against Praful Patel, Ajit Pawar-led NCP MP

CBI closes Air India corruption case against Praful Patel, Ajit Pawar-led NCP MP

New Delhi: The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) has closed a 2017 corruption case of alleged irregularities in leasing aircraft for Air India that involved former civil aviation minister Praful Patel among others, ThePrint has learnt.

A closure report was filed 19 March after no evidence was found to establish charges of corruption while the court has summoned the investigating officer next month on 15 April, sources in the federal agency said.

The development comes less than a year after Patel along with Ajit Pawar orchestrated a vertical split in the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) and joined hands with the BJP and the Shiv Sena to join the Maharashtra government.

Ajit Pawar along with other heavyweights Praful Patel and Chhagan Bhujbal had walked out of the party with a majority of MLAs leading to a vertical split in the Sharad Pawar-led outfit.

In May 2017, the CBI had filed two cases pertaining to abuse of power by officials of the Ministry of Civil Aviation under Patel and thereby causing loss to the government on the direction of the Supreme Court.

Its first FIR dealt with the purchase of 111 aircraft from Boeing and financing it through loans from American and Indian banks that lead to piling of debt on company’s balance sheet.

The second FIR dealt with the allegations of conspiracy between the ministry’s officials and the private players in leasing of aircrafts even as Air India was supposed to get the delivery of the aircrafts it had ordered.

The agency has filed a closure report in the second case, ThePrint has learnt.

The case

Non-governmental organisation Centre for Public Interest Litigation (CPIL) filed a Special Leave Petition in the Supreme Court in 2012 alleging that Patel, Air India and private parties took the decision of leasing a large number of aircraft without “due considerations regarding proper route study and marketing or price strategy”.

Patel held independent charge of the civil aviation ministry between May 2004 and January 2011 in the United Progressive Alliance (UPA) years.

Based on the Supreme Court’s order on 5 January 2017, the CBI had filed FIR under Sections 420 (cheating), 120B (criminal conspiracy) of the IPC and relevant sections of the Prevention of Corruption Act, that deal with bribes to public servants.

The litigant alleged that the National Aviation Corporation of India Ltd (NACIL), a company incorporated in August 2007 after merger of Air India and Indian Airlines, leased a large number of aircraft despite Air India was in the process of acquiring its own aircraft. The pre-existing fleet, running empty especially on overseas routes, was also causing huge losses to the company, it added.

The litigant’s allegations — which were quoted in the CBI FIR — claimed that the officials of Air India and NACIL leased 15 “expensive aircrafts” for which they did not even have pilots ready.

Air India leased four Boeing 777s for five years in 2006 despite that it was due for delivery of aircraft from July 2007, leading to a situation where five Boeing 777s and an equal number of Boeing 737s were kept idle, it was alleged.

“Standard lease agreement drafts were adopted for taking/acquiring aircraft on lease which did not have an early termination clause. On this count, NACIL was unable to terminate the lease agreements since doing so would have resulted in NACIL paying all costs and lease rental differentials,” the CBI FIR had stated.

“It has been alleged that from 2006, a decision to go for dry and wet lease of aircrafts was taken by the public servants of the ministry and the NACIL in conspiracy with private parties without due consideration regarding proper route study and marketing or pricing strategy,” the FIR stated.

“Air India with a view to benefit private parties dry leased four Boeing 777s for a period of five years in 2006, whereas it was to get the delivery of its own aircrafts from July, 2007 onwards. As result, five Boeing 777s and five Boeing 737s were kept idle on ground at an estimated loss of Rs 840 crore during the period of 2007-09,” it added.

(Edited by Tony Rai)