Quattrocchi cites 'certificate of good conduct'

By Our Special Correspondent

NEW DELHI, SEPT. 27. The Italian businessman, Mr. Ottavio Quattrocchi, chargesheeted in the Bofors payoff case and facing extradition proceedings in the Malaysian High Court, has now cited ``certificates of good conduct'' from the former Union Law Minister, Mr. Ram Jethmalani, and Mr. Prem Shankar Jha, senior journalist, in a bid to avoid getting extradited to India.

In an affidavit filed in the Malaysian High Court in June, Mr. Quattrocchi said there was no allegation or statement in the Bofors chargesheet which suggested that he had taken money on behalf of a public servant.

Taking recourse to the May 9 letter of Mr. Jethmalani to the Prime Minister, Mr. Quattrocchi claimed that it formed part of ``further evidence''. Though Mr. Quattrocchi has nothing new or substantial to state, his attempts appear directed at portraying the extradition proceedings as being political in nature. To buttress his argument, he has got affidavits from Mr. Jha and a former High Court judge.

Mr. Quattrocchi said the chargesheet against the three Hinduja brothers was filed on October 9, 2000, a year after the chargesheet naming him was filed in the court.

Mr. Jethmalani found that the chargesheet failed to disclose or allege that ``these monies were received on behalf of any public servant'' and had commented that ``some foolish charge of cheating which even a law student will find legally absurd has been levelled against them.'' In his opinion, no evidence had been advanced that the payments made to the Hindujas were related to Bofors gun contract.

Mr. Quattrocchi said there was ``no allegation or statement or evidence in the chargesheet as to the relevant public servant on whose behalf I am alleged to have taken the said monies.''

Legal circles are amazed at Mr. Quattrocchi's ``audacity'' in wanting to use a letter written by the former Law Minister to the Prime Minister in defence of the Hinduja brothers.

In his application for a judicial review of the case, he repeated that he was in India till July 30, 1993, and thereafter he had at all material times made it known to the CBI and the courts in India of his willingness to be questioned either in Malaysia or in Italy.

He claimed that during the time he was in India, the CBI did nothing to question him even when the matter was within the public domain.

In support of his application for a judicial review, he also procured and submitted affidavits by Mr. Justice S.H.S. Abidi, a former judge of the Patna High Court, and Mr. Jha.

Mr. Justice Abidi has said that there was no statutory definition for an offence of a political character in the Indian Extradition Act. But provision had been made to exclude offences of a ``political character'' or to prevent requisitions that were made for political reasons.

In his view, there was no reported decision on the meaning of a ``political character'' and where there was no decided case on any issue, it was usual for the courts in India to refer and be guided by the decisions of Commonwealth jurisdictions on similar issues.

Most curious is the 19-page affidavit of Mr. Jha who is identified as a political commentator and columnist to several leading English dailies.

Mr. Jethmalani had in the past attacked the Hindujas and called for their speedy trial and was party to the Government's decision to initiate criminal proceedings against them.

Mr. Jha has opined that the proceedings against Mr. Quattrocchi could be termed to be ``offences of a political character.''

``The purpose of focussing on Mr. Quattrocchi and bringing him back to India to testify is to find evidence to link him with the kickbacks that were allegedly received and to seek to establish that he took kickbacks on behalf of the Gandhi family,'' Mr. Jha said.

Reacting to the affidavits of Mr. Jha and Mr. Justice Abidi, the CBI spokesman defended the extradition proceedings in Malaysia, saying the CBI would contest all pleas which made little or no sense to the case.

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