Former Indian Air Force Chief Denies Taking Bribes

Rafiq Maqbool/Associated Press Former Indian Air Force chief, Shashi Prakash Tyagi, at a press conference in Srinagar, Jammu and Kashmir, in this Aug. 5, 2005, photograph.

India’s former Air Force chief on Wednesday denied allegations that he had taken bribes in connection with the country’s 2010 purchase of 12 AgustaWestland helicopters.

The bribery allegations surfaced after the arrest of Giuseppe Orsi, chief executive of Finmeccanica, AgustaWestlandâ€s parent company, on Tuesday as part of an investigation into violations of Italy’s corruption and bribery laws.

Accusations against Shashi Prakash Tyagi were detailed in The Indian Express on Wednesday. The newspaper said it obtained a copy of a report filed by Italian prosecutors against Mr. Orsi that alleged Mr. Tyagi had been bribed through his relatives to grant AgustaWestland the contract. The prosecutors’ report said 51 million euros ($68.8 million) in bribes were paid in India and Italy, The Indian Express reported.

“I’m shocked,” said Mr.Tyagi, the former head of the Indian Air Force while speaking to journalists in New Delhi on Wednesday. “There should be a full investigation.”

India’s defense minister, A.K. Antony, who initiated an investigation into the allegations on Tuesday, said Wednesday that the deal with AgustaWestland will be canceled if it is proved that bribery was involved.

The guilty will be punished, Mr. Antony pledged at a press conference Wednesday. “We will take stringent action,” he said.

The helicopters were purchased by the Indian Air Force for V.I.P. duties, like ferrying politicians, for 556 million euros. Three have been delivered so far.

The former Air Force chief is accused of tweaking the qualifying criteria in favor of AgustaWestland. On Wednesday, Mr. Tyagi said that there had been some changes to the criteria for the government’s helicopter tender but that there was no wrongdoing.

Initially, the early bidding specifications were for helicopters that flew to 18,000 feet, Mr. Tyagi explained, a height the AgustaWestland helicopters could not reach. Later, the height requirement was changed to 15,000 feet, which qualified the company to bid.

p>The change was made because only one company makes helicopters that fly to 18,000 feet, Mr. Tyagi said, but the cabin height in its helicopters was too low. These helicopters were meant to be used by V.I.P.’s and their guards, who stand with their guns while traveling, making low cabins inappropriate, Mr. Tyagi said.

“The height was brought down to 15,000 feet and cabin height was increased,” he said, which left only three companies qualified to bid for the deal.

Those changes were made in 2003, a year before he took over as Air Force chief, Mr. Tyagi said, and the deal with AgustaWestland was signed in 2010, three years after he retired from his position.

The Italian report quoted by The Indian Express said that a bribe was paid to Mr. Tyagi through three brothers who were his cousins. Mr. Tyagi confirmed Wednesday that the men, who were named by the newspaper, were his cousins and that they work for international companies in the power sector.

Reached by telephone, o! ne of the! relatives, Sanjeev Tyagi, who goes by the nickname Julie, said, “We have nothing to do with this deal, and we welcome any investigation.”