Then, he had said: Clearly, a lot of people are lying

Lindstrom, who earlier told The Indian Express that A.E. Services, the front company for Italian

businessman Ottavio Quattrocchi, was the beneficiary of political payoff today repeated his offer to help Indian investigators reconstruct the scenario. To date India has not contacted him.

Last week, in response to Sonia Gandhi’s call for a tabling of the Bofors papers, the Swedish investigator, while welcoming that call, listed Gandhi herself as being among those who could take the Bofors story further by telling what she knew about the deal. ‘‘It is clear that a lot of people are lying. Martin Ardbo told me he was being made a scapegoat to protect important people in India,’’ the Swedish investigator said. Ardbo, the former chief executive of Bofors negotiated the 1986 $1.3 billion artillery deal with India.

He kept a tell-tale diary and notes that mentioned ‘‘Gandhi,’’ the need to protect him and wrote in detail about the nervousness that gripped Bofors and the bribe-takers as the scandal unfolded in the Indian and Swedish press. His offer to help comes as Switzerland prepares to send the final set of secret Swiss bank documents to Indian investigators. This set is expected to link the Hindujas to the payoffs.

Informed circles suggest that India should step up some pressure on Switzerland for a swift transfer of the last set. In January 1987, Switzerland sent the first set of secret bank documents that showed the link between Quattrocchi and former Bofors agent Win Chadha and the bribes. Commenting on the shadow of Bofors that has appeared without fail over recent elections in India, Lindstrom said: ‘‘India is a democracy and people want to know the truth—I believe the truth will come out one day.’’

The Swedish investigator said he kept detailed notes from his interrogation with Bofors officials and these pointed towards the Gandhi link as the main reason for the elaborate cover-up mounted in India.

His investigation was called off, under pressure from India, as he prepared to explore this link. Lindstrom said he would be willing to go back to his papers if India was interested in pursuing a serious investigation.

It is not uncommon for investigative agencies of countries to share information on an informal basis and serious investigators are known to prefer this track as it cuts out bureaucratic delays.

In the draft charge-sheet, the CBI has reportedly named Rajiv Gandhi for having ‘‘full knowledge’’ of the Bofors pay-off and entering into a conspiracy to defraud the exchequer. The charge-sheet says Ottavio Quattrocchi, Italian representative of Snamprogetti (a fertilizer company) in India, was a family friend of Rajiv’s, he went on four holidays with Rajiv and Sonia Gandhi during Rajiv’s tenure as prime minister.

The material evidences available with the CBI disclose that $7.1 million went to AE Services, a shell company owned by Quattrocchi, his wife Maria Quattrocchi and several unnamed partners, from the Bofors pay-off. According to the secret bank documents, the trail of the money is intriguing. Within 24 hours the money was transferred to four different accounts.

The Rajiv Gandhi goverment cleared the deal in 24 hours, abruptly reversing seven years of trials. It changed the order of preference from the number one gun Sofma to the number two choice Bofors.

Interestingly, in an undertaking given by AE Services to AB Bofors, they said that they would get seven-and-a-half per cent commission if Bofors was awarded the contract before a certain period. This according to the CBI was the reason for the ‘‘undue haste’’ in which the deal was clinched.

But the vital documents relating to the sixth account are still to be made available to India. Currently they are being scrutinised by examining magistrate Justice Perraudin in Geneva.

The five appellants in the Swiss courts—Ottavio Quattrocchi, two Hinduja brothers, Win Chadda and Maria Quattrocchi—some of whom also figure in the draft charge-sheet as accused have tried hard to stall the release of the papers. They claimed that the human rights situation in India was ‘‘life threatening’’ and the rule of law did not prevail which would ensure that they would not get a fair trial here. The courts rejected every appeal and ensured that the secret bank documents were made available to India.

The conspiracyangle in the Bofors, however, would remain elusive till rest of the papers reach India. In February 1997, the Swiss Government had simplified laws to make it easier for the release of number of such accounts, details of which are sought by other countries.

The second set of papers will finally reach the Cantonal court in March. Within 30 days the cantonal court will have to refer the matter to the Federal Court which will be the final arbiter in the case. Once the final appeal is exhausted, the Indian Government will at last get its hands on the elusive identity of those involved in the deal.

What has CBI done since 1998