Desk: The Supreme Court has granted bail to British national Christian Michel James in the ₹3,600 crore AgustaWestland scam. Michel, accused of being a middleman in the VVIP helicopter deal, was under investigation by the CBI and ED. He was arrested in 2018 and extradited from Dubai.
The CBI and ED had registered two separate cases regarding the AgustaWestland deal, which involved the purchase of 12 VVIP helicopters. In March 2022, the Delhi High Court rejected Michel’s bail plea, after which he challenged the decision in the Supreme Court, arguing that he had already served almost half of his sentence.
Initially, the Supreme Court denied his bail request and even refused to hear his plea in 2024. However, in December, the court sought a response from the CBI regarding his bail plea. Last month, a Delhi court had also ordered a hip surgery for Michel.
AgustaWestland helicopters are considered among the best in the world. However, the deal was canceled due to allegations of bribery and corruption. Reports in 2013-14 revealed that several officials had accepted bribes for the deal, leading to cases against 13 individuals, including former Air Force Chief S.P. Tyagi. The Congress party also faced allegations in connection with the scam. In Italy, two officials from the helicopter manufacturing company were convicted.