— Photo: PTI

TALKING TOUGH: Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar talking to the media in Patna on Saturday.

PATNA: With the purchase of an aircraft during President's Rule snowballing into a controversy, Chief Minister Nitish Kumar on Saturday said he would look into it and take action as per law.

The reported conclusion of the Principal Accountant-General (PAG) that the purchase of the King Air C90B in 2005 was not in conformity with rules has put the focus on Chief Secretary G.S. Kang as the State was under President's Rule with then Governor Buta Singh at the helm of affairs.

The PAG said the Governor had been kept in the dark regarding the procedures and his approval was obtained without bringing to his notice that tender procedures had been waived in this case and the State shelled out $ 2,765,000 for the "phased out" aircraft.

The proposal was first put before the then Chief Minister Rabri Devi in November 2004. The clearance was not obtained and following the imposition of Central rule, the file was forwarded to Mr. Singh in March 2005.

"Second hand airplane"

The PAG came out against the purchase suspecting it to be a second hand airplane and considered the King Air C90GT as ideally suited for the State when it could have been purchased for a marginally higher price at $ 2,950,000. It said its low operating cost, fuel efficiency and ability to take off from short runways and less efficient strips would fit in with conditions obtaining in the State.

Apart from highlighting irregularities in the purchase, the PAG disclosed that Rs. 33 lakh had been paid as commission to Indamer, an agent of U.S manufacturer of the aircraft M/s Raytheon.

"Direct purchase"

The Chief Secretary, however, denied any irregularity and justified the purchase. He said no rules had been violated and there was nothing shady in the deal.

He said the aircraft had been purchased directly from the manufacturer and if the company had any agent he was not aware of it.

Procedure to be followed

The Chief Minister said he had not seen the report and that there was a set procedure to be followed in the case. The report would have to be tabled in the Assembly and the Public Accounts Committee would inquire into the matter and the State Government would go by its recommendations.

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