The CBI intends to send letters rogatory to the UK, UAE and South Korea in connection to a bribery case involving lobbyist Sanjay Bhandari, officials said on Tuesday. Bhandari is accused of exerting influence over a contract for setting up a dual feed cracker unit (DGCU) at an ONGC Petro Additions Ltd (OPAL) plant in Gujarat’s Dahej.
According to officials, the agency has filed three applications requesting the issuance of letters rogatory to the UAE, the UK, and South Korea. These letters serve as a judicial request to foreign courts seeking assistance in obtaining information about the case, as well as the individuals and companies involved in the alleged wrongdoing.
According to the CBI, the tender for the DFCU was floated on April 20, 2007, and two consortiums participated in the bidding process. The first consortium consisted of Linde from Germany and SECL from Korea, while the second consortium comprised Shaw Stone and Webster from the USA and L&T from India.
In 2008, both consortiums submitted their bids, and the front-end technology consultant for the project, Foster Wheeler Energy Ltd from the UK, calculated the Net Present Value (NPV) which was determined to be Rs 4,160 crore for the Linde consortium and Rs 3,918 crore for the Shaw Stone & Webster consortium.
After Shaw Stone & Webster’s request for a review was rejected, the contract for the DFCU was awarded to the Linde and SECL consortium with a quoted lump sum price of Rs 6,744.32 crore citing high NPV, as per the CBI.
The CBI has accused Sanjay Bhandari, the director of UAE-based Santech International, of engaging in a criminal conspiracy with Samsung Engineering Co Ltd (SECL). The agency alleges that Bhandari charged a consultancy fee of USD 49.99 lakh from SECL, which violated the integrity clause stated in the contract agreement between SECL and OPAL.
Korean Link
The probe discovered multiple email exchanges between Bhandari and Hong Nam Koong, who held the position of senior manager at SECL, including consulting service agreement between Santech and SECL, as alleged in the FIR.
According to officials, the alleged consultancy fee was received in overseas accounts of Santech International on June 13, 2009 which was nearly four months after the contract between OPAL and the Linde consortium was executed.
The agency has further alleged that the consultancy charges were believed to be bribes intended to influence public officials and secure the contract for OPAL’s Dual Fuel Cracker unit to be set up at the Dahej Petrochemical complex in Gujarat in favor of SECL.
UK Connection
As per the FIR, the investigation also revealed an unsigned agreement dated July 19, 2007, between SECL and Foster Wheeler Energy Ltd, a front-end technology consultant from the UK, which purportedly appointed SECL as a consultant.
Officials said the agreement was significant as it was established several months after the initiation of the tendering process as Foster Wheeler was responsible for preparing bid documents and calculating the NPV which later played a crucial role in determining the basis for selecting the Linde consortium.
The CBI has examined over 60 people and needs data pertaining to Santech from the Registrar of Companies in UAE for the period of 2006 to 2016, the officials said.
According to the officials, all the records associated with the UAE-registered company are required to be submitted to the Registrar of Companies in the UAE. The CBI intends to obtain information regarding contracts between SECL and Santech, which may have been submitted as part of statutory compliance.
During the investigation, it was also discovered that Bhandari allegedly transferred Rs 2 crore to Farhan Mohammed Aslam, who is another director in Santech. The funds were reportedly transferred to Aslam’s company, Jaslam Trading, in 2015. The CBI has requested detailed information regarding this transaction as well.
(With inputs from PTI)
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