CBI books Rolls Royce over ‘contracts with PSUS’

NEWDELHI: The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) has booked London-based Rolls Royce and its Indian subsidiary for allegedly engaging services of an agent in India to get contacts from Navratna Public Sector Undertaking Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL), Oil and Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC) and GAIL, a spokesperson of the CBI said.

Singapore-based company M/s Aashmore and unknown officials of HAL are also named in the First Information Report (FIR). Between 2000 and 2013, Rolls Royce got contracts worth ₹ 4,736 crore from HAL, besides contracts for the supply of spare parts to GAIL and ONGC, CBI has said in the FIR.

It has alleged that the company appointed an individual “as a commercial advisor for providing sales, logistic support, local business expertise and strategic advice in violation of term and conditions of purchase orders and integrity pact” with both HAL and ONCG.

The integrity pact bars the appointment of individuals for such purposes, CBI adds.

The case has been filed five years after a long “Preliminary Enquiry” by the agency, CBI said in the FIR, which says that “there is a likelihood” that M/s Rolls Royce engaged “M/s Aashmore Pvt Ltd “on payment of commission in other purchase orders,” which in turn was paid as “kickbacks to unknown officials of HAL involved in the procurement process”.

Similarly, for ONCG and GAIL, CBI has said in the FIR, that Rolls Royce paid M/s Aashmore Pvt Ltd nearly a million British Pounds as commission for 68 contracts with GAIL between 2007 and 2010. And between 2007 and 2011, commission worth nearly ₹30 crore was paid to M/s Aashmore Pvt Ltd for 73 purchase orders placed by ONGC from Rolls Royce, the FIR added.

“As per Government guidelines” Rolls Royce has to “declare upfront in their bids the name of their Indian agents and the commission payable to them. But Rolls Royce did not declare the name of any agent,” FIR stated.

A Rolls Royce spokesperson said, “We are aware of reports that the CBI has announced a FIR relating to the use of intermediaries by Rolls-royce’s former Energy business in India...we await contact from the CBI and will respond appropriately. We will not tolerate business misconduct of any sort and we are committed to maintaining high ethical standards and no-one currently working for Rolls-royce in India played any part in these Energy deals. India is an important market for Rolls-royce and we have a valued workforce of skilled people in the country.”