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A dogfight in Indian arms bazaar
Published on Thu, May 17, 2007 at 22:59, Updated on Thu, May 17, 2007 at 23:00 in 
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New Delhi: The arms bazaar is changing its style and cloak and dagger appears to be out of fashion.
A dogfight in the Indian arms bazaar has landed up in the Supreme Court. An Austrian arms dealer has charged a Russian company with fraud saying the Russians have failed to honour a commitment to pay a commission for a helicopter deal with India.
Rite Approach Limited, an Austrian company, has gone to court charging Russian helicopter Kazan with cheating it out a rightful commission in a Rs 180 crore deal with India for 16 Mi-17 helicopters.
The Russians have apparently admitted to an agreement to pay a 16 per cent commission or Rs 29 crore to the Austrian company, but instead they diverted the money to Rosbornoexport, Russia's official arms marketing company.
What's interesting to note here is the fact that payment of undisclosed commissions is banned by India.
The arms bazaar rivalries have now spilled on to the streets of New Delhi as the weapons trade cut-throat acquires a new dimension. Whatever the merits or motives of one set of arms dealers dragging the other to court, what is clear is that the contest for India's defence deals will now move out of the shadows and be played out in public.
Conspiracy theorists see a hidden motive behind the litigation. They feel the aim could be to scuttle a much larger deal for 80 Mi-17 helicopters, which is in the offing. Despite the ban, middlemen are only getting bolder.
Says Ex-Chief Vigilance Commissioner, N Vittal, "Instead of having a ban on middlemen, it is better to clearly have principles or rules to recognise such agents."
Over the last three years, India has emerged as the world's largest arms importer, but it's been unable to shake off the intrigue which surrounds its defence deals.
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