The Supreme Court has deferred the bail hearing of Christian Michel James, the British national implicated as a middleman in the infamous Rs 3,600-crore AgustaWestland VVIP chopper scandal, to February 18. The decision came after the Central Bureau of Investigation’s (CBI) counsel requested additional time during the session led by Justices Vikram Nath and Sandeep Mehta.
Christian Michel has been in custody since his extradition from Dubai in December 2018 and has been consistently denied bail by various courts. His most recent appeal in the apex court follows a September 25 ruling by the Delhi High Court, which refused to grant him bail, citing no substantial change in circumstances since his previous applications were rejected.
The controversy revolves around the procurement of 12 luxury helicopters from the Italian-British company, AgustaWestland, a deal that has drawn scrutiny for alleged corrupt practices including kickbacks amounting to millions of euros paid to secure the contract. The CBI, in its chargesheet, estimated a loss of 398.21 million euros (about Rs 2,666 crore) to the Indian exchequer from this deal, which was initially inked on February 8, 2010.
The Enforcement Directorate (ED), which is also investigating Michel in a related money laundering case, claimed in its June 2016 chargesheet that he had received 30 million euros (approximately Rs 225 crore) from AgustaWestland. This has further complicated his legal battles, with both agencies asserting the severity of the allegations against him.
Previously, on February 7, 2023, the Supreme Court had denied Michel’s bail plea, where he argued that he had served half of the maximum sentence possible for the charges he faces. The ongoing judicial proceedings highlight the complex and layered nature of the case, which has significant international and diplomatic ramifications.
