Tag Archives: Ravi Rishi

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Lt Gen Tejinder visited Army chief on Sept 22: Register

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Neeraj Chauhan, TNN Apr 23, 2012, 02.49AM IST

NEW DELHI: The Central Bureau of Investigation, which is probing Army chief General V K Singh’s claim that he was offered a Rs 14 crore bribe by Lt Gen (Retd) Tejinder Singh, has found that the “visitor’s register” of South Block has an entry showing that Lt Gen Tejinder Singh had visited the Army chief’s office on September 22, 2010.

The visitor’s entry in the register, which was taken by the CBI on Friday from South Block, has been signed by Lt Gen (Retd) Tejinder Singh and it mentions “official to meet” as Gen V K Singh.
A senior CBI officer said this was a “major evidence” to show that Lt Gen Tejinder Singh was in the Army chief’s office that day but what transpired inside the room, the alleged bribery offer, is yet to be proved. The Army chief assured CBI officials in his meeting on Friday that he would provide more evidence soon.

A CBI team had recorded Gen V K Singh’s statement in two rounds on Friday and picked up the ‘visitor’s register’. Apart from the register, the agency has also collected several documents provided by the Army chief, which reportedly include documents related to the Tatra deal and communications between the defence ministry and BEML.

Gen V K Singh had earlier this month given a written complaint to the CBI alleging that Lt Gen Tejinder Singh had come to his office on September 22, 2010 and had offered him a bribe of Rs 14 crore on behalf of Vectra group chairman Ravi Rishi to clear a deal of sub-standard Tatra trucks for the Indian Army. Sources said on that day, Gen V K Singh had asked his staff to “escort him (Lt Gen Tejinder Singh) out of his office” and reportedly asked Lt Gen Tejinder Singh “not to come again”.

Refuting the allegations, Lt Gen Tejinder Singh claimed in an interview that “he used to meet Gen V K Singh frequently for professional work and that he had gone to his (Gen V K Singh’s) office in September 2010 for some personal work”. He has also filed a defamation suit against the Army chief.

The agency is probing a preliminary enquiry into the alleged bribery offer and is expected to convert it into a regular case soon. Agency sources said they might question Lt Gen Tejinder Singh next week.

The agency has also collected some evidence in its probe in the Tatra procurement scam. Gen V K Singh too has provided important documents to the agency. The CBI has already approached Interpol to get details of companies related to Ravi Rishi in at least four countries- Czech Republic, Slovakia, UK and Liechtenstein.

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‘Tainted’ IAS couple linked to Ravi Rishi in Tatra scam?

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TNN | Apr 22, 2012, 01.53AM IST

NEW DELHI: The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) probe into the Tatra scam is examining a connection between Madhya Pradesh IAS couple Arvind Joshi and Tinoo Joshi, who are facing graft charges, and London-based businessman Ravi Rishi.

The CBI is looking at Rishi’s Vectra Group acquiring maximum shares in Greater Noida’s Indian Exposition Mart Limited (IEML) at the time when Tinoo Joshi was posted as Development Commissioner Handicrafts in the ministry of textiles.

Sources said the agency is scrutinizing the bank accounts of the IAS couple, who were suspended by the MP government after the Income Tax department recovered more than Rs 3 crore cash during a raid at their house in February, 2010.

CBI is examining transaction details of 70 bank accounts of the suspended IAS couple and an official said “All entries in their accounts and related transaction details are being looked at. We may question the IAS couple in this regard”.

“Acquisition of majority shares in IEML by the Vectra Group is under the scanner. There are allegations that role of Joshi was crucial role in this acquisition,” said the source. The agency recently conducted raids at IEML in Greater Noida and have recovered certain documents in this regard.

The agency is investigating Rishi, a majority stakeholder in Tatra Sipox (UK), for alleged irregularities in the purchase of more than 6,000 Tatra trucks after Army chief Gen V K Singh claimed that he was offered a Rs 14 crore bribe on behalf of the businessman. The CBI is also taking assistance of the Enforcement Directorate (ED) and the Income Tax department in this regard.

The CBI may also soon question Rishi again after having already sought assistance of the Interpol to get details about certain companies – allegedly associated with the NRI businessman – that are based in Slovakia, Czech Republic, the UK and Liechtenstein.

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Skeletons tumble out of Tatra-tainted Natarajan’s closet

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FRIDAY, 20 APRIL 2012 00:16 PNS | NEW DELHI HITS: 263 – The Pioneer

Under VRS Natarajan, PSU giant BEML was involved in large scale irregularities that went beyond Tatra truck deal. The CBI on Thursday registered an FIR against him for cheating and criminal conspiracy in hiring a consultancy firm without tendering process.

The noose is fast tightening around Natarajan, who has been Chairman and Managing Director of defence PSU BEML for almost a decade, with the CBI set to more cases following sanction for prosecution granted by the Defence Ministry.

At least six complaints of alleged financial misdemeanour by Natarajan is under CBI scanner.

After registering a case against Natarajan and Director of Coimbatore-based Astral Consultants CS Srivatsan for allegedly tweaking tenders to favour the private firm by cheating BEML, the CBI conducted searches at the official and residential premises of the duo at Bangalore and Coimbatore.

Natarajan, Srivatsan and other unnamed persons have been booked under Section 120-B (criminal conspiracy) and 420 (cheating) of the Indian Penal Code and certain provisions of the Prevention of Corruption Act.

The case related to award of contract for the implementation of Enterprises Resource Planning Project in the public sector undertaking during 2004-09.

According to the CBI FIR, Natarajan and Srivatsan were part of alleged criminal conspiracy to award work worth Rs40 crore to Astral Consultants.

“It is alleged that the accused persons were parties to a criminal conspiracy entered amongst themselves at Bangalore and other places during 2004-09 to cheat M/s BEML in the matter of award of different works relating to the implementation of Enterprises Resource Planning Project in M/s BEML causing wrongful loss to M/s BEML and wrongful gain to others,” a CBI spokesperson said here.

Teams of CBI officials reached the Bangalore-residence of Natarajan, residence of Srivatsan, besides Coimbatore office of Astral and took into their possession some “incriminating” documents related to the tendering process and communications exchanged with the company, CBI sources said.

Natarajan is already facing CBI heat for his suspected role in a separate case regarding alleged irregularities in the procurement and supply of Tatra all terrain vehicles to Army. Natarajan has not been named so far in the Tatra procurement scandal case but the agency suspects that he was the mastermind of the entire scam.

The agency suspects that Natarajan in collusion with Vectra boss Ravi Rishi renewed the deal between BEML and UK-based Tatra Sipox in 2003, four years before the same was to be renewed, for supply of the all terrain vehicles to the Army. Tatra Sipox, according to the CBI FIR, was an intermediary firm and not an original equipment manufacturer. The original manufacturer of the Tatra trucks is Tatra Venus and defence procurement rules provide for procurement from OEMs only.

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Money laundering in Tatra truck deal: ED tightens noose on Ravi Rishi

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Jagran Post -Posted on: 13 Apr 2012, 12:21 PM

New Delhi: After being interrogated by the CBI for his alleged role in the Tatra truck deal, the NRI businessman Ravi Rishi now has to face the heat from the Enforcement Directorate (ED), which is tightening its noose around him.

The ED has filed a case against Rishi under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) and is mulling to recover the blackmoney from the accused. After going through the FIR filed by the CBI and the other documents, the ED officials have now decided to look into the case from the perspective of alleged money laundering.

According to sources, the links of the Tatra truck deal have been traced to England, Czech Republic and Slovakia. Earlier, in order to ascertain the original price of the supplies and detection of blackmoney earned by Rishi during the sale of trucks to the BEML, the CBI had sought help from the ED.

On the lines of the CBI, the ED has also made Rishi, BEML, Army and Defense Ministry officials as accused in the money laundering case.

Rishi has been accused of entering into a conspiracy with the officials of the Defence Ministry, Army and BEML in signing an agreement with England based company Tatra Sipox. As per the agreement, Tatra Sipox had purchased components of trucks from Czech Republic and Slovakia and supplied it to BEML at double price.

Later, the BEML manufactured trucks from these parts and supplied them to the Army which in return made the payment to Tatra Sipox.

According to the investigating agency, a share of the blackmoney earned by Rishi in the deal was distributed to the officials of the Army, Defence Ministry and BEML. The ED is now looking for the officials involved in the scam to freeze their properties.

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Tatra case: Rishi’s money trail leads CBI to UK

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CNN-IBN India | Updated Apr 08, 2012 at 09:46pm IST

New Delhi: The CBI is looking into the payments made by defence PSU BEML to Tatra Sipox UK for the supply of all terrain trucks and plans to send judicial request to the United Kingdom seeking details of its financial transactions and ownerships.
The agency suspects that payments from BEML were actually going to a tax haven, CBI sources said, adding that they are probing into it but added that the investigations are in preliminary stage.
The sources said at present they are likely to send Letters Rogatory to the UK seeking information on financial transactions of Tatra Sipox UK in which Vectra Chairman Ravinder Rishi has been a Director, owning substantial shares.
The agency will also demand details of Tatra Sipox UK’s association with Czech-republic based Tatra a.s, they said.
Rishi has refuted allegations of any wrong doing and is said to be co-operating with the agency during his questioning sessions during last week, the sources said.
The CBI is now focusing on the role of officials of Defence Ministry, BEML and army and may question them in connection with the case soon, they said.
The sources said it was in 1997 that Tatra Sipox UK signed the truck supply deal with BEML which was in alleged violation of defence procurement rules which say that procurement should be done directly from original equipment manufacturer only.
The CBI has alleged that since Tatra Sipox UK was not the original manufacturer of these all terrain trucks, the rule that defence procurements should be made from original
manufacturer was violated.
Meanwhile, Czech Republic-based Tatra a.s. had said in a statement that it supplies for India various truck components (“CKDs”) that make up approximately 30 to 35 per cent of a complete vehicle.
“The remaining components are made or supplied by other manufacturers or by BEML, an Indian government controlled company that also assembles the Tatra branded vehicles and then sells and delivers them to customers within India under license agreement for Tatra a.s,” it had said in a statement.
It had also stated that neither Ravi Rishi nor his investment company Vectra Limited, control or have controlled — directly or indirectly — Tatra a.s. “The British company Vectra Limited is a minority stakeholder in Tatra holdings and in principle holds one of
the four votes.
“Nonetheless, Tatra will request from Mr Rishi and Vectra Limited an explanation of the information about any initiated investigation of him and Vectra Ltd by Indian Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) as it relates to sales of products branded with the ‘Tatra’ name,” it had said in a statement.

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New details emerge on Tatra truck deal

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THE HINDU

NEW DELHI, April 2, 2012

PRAVEEN SWAMI,VINAY KUMAR

CBI questions London millionaire again

Even as Central Bureau of Investigation detectives have begun questioning Ravi Rishi, the London-based millionaire businessman at the heart of the showdown between the Defence Ministry and Chief of the Army Staff V.K. Singh, fresh details have begun to emerge of the truck deal that precipitated the crisis.

Rajan Mukherjee, the general manager of West Bengal-based Ural India, has told The Hindu that General Singh — then General Officer-Commanding of the Eastern Command — had requested the firm to provide trucks for testing in 2008, after Tatra trucks sold by Mr. Rishi’s firm “miserably failed 17 Mountain for performing Quick Reaction Team and reconnaissance duties in [the] super-high altitude areas of northern Sikkim.”

“Defects”

“During the trials,” Mr. Mukherjee said in an e-mail to The Hindu, “the Tatra vehicle developed defects in engine assembly, whereas Ural’s engine performance was satisfactory even after running about 600 km at high altitude.”

Mr. Rishi owns Vectra, a conglomerate which has a controlling stake in Czech and Slovak-based specialist truck firm Tatra, which has supplied the Indian Army since 1986.

Rashi Verma, a Joint Secretary at the Defence Ministry, had said last week that the government had “never received any complaint from the armed forces” — a statement which suggests the Eastern Command either chose not to pass on its problems with the Tatra to the army headquarters in New Delhi, or that its reports were suppressed by higher authorities.

In an exclusive interview to The Hindu published on March 26, General Singh had said he was offered a Rs. 14-crore bribe, which, it emerged, was linked to an officer allegedly representing Tatra to clear a consignment of 600 trucks.

There is no information available so far if Ural India’s trucks were the sole platform tested by the Eastern Command in Northern Sikkim and if so, why. Ural is co-owned by Kolkata-based magnate J.K. Saraf, who knew Gen. Singh during his tenure as Eastern Army Commander. There is no allegation, however, of the relationship having caused improper influence to be exercised.

Mr. Mukherjee’s claims, however, stand in stark contrast to earlier statements by VRS Natarajan, the head of public-sector giant BEML, which co-manufactures Tatra trucks in India. Mr. Natarajan claimed that Ural India’s trucks had been knocked out of competition in the ongoing trials, a claim Mr. Mukherjee has denied in his e-mail to The Hindu, adding that his firm is considering “appropriate action.”

The BEML chief, however, has since been backed by Defence Research and Development Organisation chief V.K. Saraswat, who said Tatra trucks were “outstanding.” Both BEML and Tatra have said they are considering legal action against General Singh, but provided no details of their course of action.

Army sources said the problem encountered in Sikkim could have been related to the Tatra truck’s engine, which is designed for rugged battlefield use, compromising high-altitude performance in return for lower risks of breakdown.

CBI officials refused comment on the issues they had discussed with Mr. Rishi, but the businessman has been barred from leaving India until further notice.

He was earlier questioned by the agency officials last week, soon after the CBI registered an FIR in the case. CBI officials were also poring over and analysing a number of documents seized during raids in Delhi, Noida and Bangalore.

Apart from Mr. Rishi, the FIR refers to unknown officials of BEML, Vectra and the Army. The case was registered under provisions of the Indian Penal Code relating to criminal conspiracy to cheat and under the Prevention of Corruption Act.

The investigators are tasked with looking into all purchases of Tatra trucks made from 1997, when Vectra took control of Tatra. Since 1986, the Army has purchased some 7,000 Tatra trucks to transport troops and artillery.