Ratul Puri sent to 6-day CBI custody in AgustaWestland VVIP chopper scam

New Delhi: Businessman Ratul Puri, nephew of Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Kamal Nath, who was arrested by the Enforcement Directorate in a money laundering case, was on Thursday sent to a six-day CBI custody by the Rouse Avenue Court. 

Puri was arrested on Wednesday by the ED for his alleged involvement in Rs 3,600-crore AgustaWestland VVIP chopper money laundering case. Following his arrest, he was remanded to a one-day judicial custody by the Delhi court, who set the hearing on CBI's plea seeking his custody for September 5, i.e on Thursday. 

Puri, who is in judicial custody till September 17 in connection with a Rs 354-crore bank fraud case filed by the Central Bank of India, was produced before the court after it issued a production warrant to him, yesterday. He had earlier filed an application in the court seeking to surrender in the case. 

The case pertains to alleged irregularities in the purchase of 12 VVIP choppers from Italy-based Finmeccanica's British subsidiary AgustaWestland.

The deal was scrapped by the NDA government in 2014 over the alleged breach of contractual obligations and charges of payment of kickbacks for securing the deal.

Puri was arrested from his Delhi residence on August 20 under PMLA. The CBI had booked Ratul Puri, his company, his father and Managing Director Deepak Puri, Directors Nita Puri (Ratul's mother and Kamal Nath's sister), Sanjay Jain and Vineet Sharma for alleged criminal conspiracy, cheating, forgery and corruption.