New Delhi, March 4
Giving a legal burial, a Delhi court today allowed the CBI’s closure report seeking withdrawal of prosecution against elusive Italian businessman Ottavio Quattrocchi in the two-decade-old Bofors payoffs case, saying the country cannot afford to spend hard-earned money on his extradition, which has already cost Rs 250 crore.

The CBI had been seeking withdrawal of the case against Quattrocchi, one of the alleged recipients of kickbacks in the controversial Rs 640 million Bofors Gun deal, citing lack of evidence. A CBI official said that accepting the closure report, the court observed that the case should be closed and there was no need to waste public money.

"Can we allow this hard earned money of the ‘aam aadmi’ to be spent on these type of proceedings which are not going to do any good to them, after almost 25 years of the so called arms deal? The answer would be a big no,” ruled Chief Metropolitan Magistrate Vinod Yadav in his 73-page order.

“The very question which stares us at our faces is whether it is justified for the government and CBI to continue to spend on the extradition of ‘Q’, which may or may not ultimately happen during his lifetime,” the court said allowing the CBI plea to withdraw the case against 70-year-old fugitive Italian. Quattrocchi, who fled from here on July 29-30, 1993, has never appeared before any court in India to face prosecution.

The kickbacks controversy had led to the fall of the Rajiv Gandhi government in 1989. Many influential figures were accused of receiving payoffs in the purchase of Bofors guns for the Indian Army.