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Officials said on Tuesday that the Central Bank of Iraq intends to send rogatory letters to the United Kingdom, the United Arab Emirates and South Korea in connection with a bribery case involving lobbyist Sanjay Bhandari. Bhandari is accused of exerting influence over a contract to set up a double feed cracking unit (DGCU) at the ONGC Petro Additions Ltd (OPAL) plant in Dahej, Gujarat.
According to the officials, the agency has submitted three requests to issue rogatory letters to the United Arab Emirates, the United Kingdom and South Korea. These letters serve as a judicial request to foreign courts seeking assistance in obtaining information about the case, as well as to individuals and companies implicated in alleged wrongdoing.
According to the CBI, the DFCU tender was launched on April 20, 2007, and two consortia were involved in the bidding process. The first consortium consists of Linde from Germany and SECL from Korea, while the second consortium consists of Shaw Stone and Webster from the USA and L&T from India.
In 2008, both consortia submitted their bids and the front technology consultant for the project, Foster Wheeler Energy Ltd of UK, calculated the net present value (NPV) which was determined to be Rs 4,160 crores for Linde consortium and Rs. 3,918 crore for Shaw Stone & Webster consortium.
After Shaw Stone & Webster’s application for review was rejected, the DFCU contract was awarded to Linde consortium and SECL at a lump sum price of Rs 6,744.32 crore quoting high NPV, according to CBI.
Sanjay Bhandari, director of UAE-based Santech International, has been charged by the CBI with being involved in a criminal conspiracy with Samsung Engineering Co Ltd (SECL). The agency alleges that Bhandari charged SECL $49.99 thousand in consulting fees, which violated the integrity clause of the contract agreement between SECL and OPAL.
Korean link
The investigation discovered several emails exchanged between Bhandari and Hong Nam Koong, who served as a senior manager at SECL, including an advisory service agreement between Santech and SECL, as alleged by the FIR.
According to officials, the alleged consulting fees were received in Santech International’s offshore accounts on June 13, 2009, approximately four months after the contract was executed between OPAL and the Linde consortium.
The agency further alleged that the consultancy fees were believed to be bribes intended to influence public officials and secure the contract for Opal’s dual fuel cracker to be constructed at the Dahej Petrochemical complex in Gujarat for SECL.
UK connection
According to 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 United Kingdom, which allegedly appointed SECL as a consultant.
Officials said the agreement was significant as it was established several months after the tender process began as Foster Wheeler was responsible for preparing bid documents and the NPV calculation that later played a crucial role in determining the basis for the selection of the Linde consortium.
Officials said the CBI has screened more than 60 people and needs data related to Santech from the Registrar of Companies in the UAE for the period from 2006 to 2016.
According to the officials, all records associated with the company registered in the UAE must 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 legal compliance.
During the investigation, it was discovered that Bhandari had allegedly transferred 2 crore rupees to Farhan Muhammad Aslam, another director of Santik. The money was reportedly transferred to Jaslam Trading Company, which is owned by Aslam, in 2015. The CBI has requested detailed information regarding this transaction as well.
(with input from PTI)
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