M A I N   N E W S

Govt not to part with CVC report
Tribune News Service

New Delhi, August 9
Defence Minister George Fernandes today ruled out placing the Central Vigilance Committee (CVC) report on defence deals to the Public Accounts Committee (PAC) on the grounds that it was a secret document, even as he charged the Opposition with politicising the issue.

“The report has been labelled as top secret by the CVC and we cannot part with it”, Mr Fernandes told newspersons here.

Mr Fernandes, who has been at the receiving end of a vociferous Opposition in Parliament on this issue, maintained that the government had not hidden anything from the PAC.

“We have not hidden anything. They want the CVC report, but the CVC has written that it is secret. There is nothing more to it”, he said adding that the CVC report did not cover the coffin deal. “There is no question of hiding anything”, he added.

Charging the Opposition with initiating a “motivated and sustained campaign” on the coffin issue, Mr Fernandes sought to clarify that he was in no way involved in the acquisition of caskets and the purchase was cleared at the level of the Defence Secretary.

“For over two years, a motivated and sustained campaign has been going on against me on the issue by certain political parties”, he said.

Mr Fernandes said he was not aware of the casket deal till the time it was raised in Parliament following the CAG report on Kargil purchases.

On the deal made in August, 1999, where each casket cost the government $ 2,500, attracting a lot of criticism, the Defence Minister said “military sources in the USA had confirmed that the cost of each casket was $ 2,768.

“We paid for them and we have them”, he said, adding that the Letter of Credit was opened for 150 caskets and 900 bodybags costing Rs 1.77 crore and after deduction of 10 per cent warranty, Rs 1.47 crore were paid.

The caskets were subsequently rejected by the Army after an inspection which revealed they were overweight and not dye-pressed but welded, he said.

“I would like the armed forces to bring these specialised caskets out of the godowns and use them”, Mr Fernandes said.

The armed forces are now using makeshift wooden caskets to transport bodies of soldiers killed in counter-insurgency and other operations.

“The armed forces are using wooden caskets, which often leak, to bring back bodies of soldiers. The imported caskets are shakeproof and anti-erosion. Nothing stands in the way of their being used”, Mr Fernandes said.