SC draws curtain on Bofors case, dismisses final plea against Hinduja brothers' acquittal

The Supreme Court on Thursday brought the long-running Bofors pay-off case to a close by dismissing the last surviving appeal against the 2005 Delhi High Court judgment that had quashed criminal proceedings against the three Hinduja brothers and Swedish arms manufacturer AB Bofors.

A bench of Justices JB Pardiwala and K Vinod Chandran refused to grant more time to advocate and BJP leader Ajay K Agrawal, who had challenged the high court verdict. The matter had remained pending since 2018, largely over the question of whether a private individual's appeal could continue after the Central Bureau of Investigation's (CBI) own challenge had already failed.

During the hearing, Agrawal requested four weeks to remove the names of deceased respondents Srichand P Hinduja and Gopichand P Hinduja from the case records. Prakash P Hinduja, chairman of Hinduja Group in Europe, remained among the respondents.

The bench, however, questioned the continuation of the proceedings. "What is all this about the Hinduja brothers and CBI?" it asked. After being informed that the Delhi High Court had already quashed all proceedings, the judges observed, "All proceedings were quashed. What is this? How many years have passed?"

When Agrawal attempted to explain that the defence deal dated back to 1986 and referred to the CBI's earlier appeal, the bench responded, "No, no...dismissed." Rejecting his request for more time, it added, "No question of adjournment. It is a 2018 matter," before dismissing the appeal.

High court ruling now attains finality

The dismissal effectively upholds the Delhi High Court's May 31, 2005 judgment, which had cleared Srichand, Gopichand and Prakash Hinduja, along with AB Bofors, of all criminal proceedings. The high court had also criticised the CBI's handling of the investigation, noting that the probe had cost the exchequer nearly Rs 250 crore.

The Supreme Court had earlier refused to entertain the CBI's own appeal in 2018, citing an unexplained delay of 4,522 days in filing it. The court had held that it was "not convinced" with the reasons offered to condone the delay, though it had allowed the agency to argue its case in Agrawal's pending appeal.

A case that shaped India's political history

The Bofors controversy dates back to the Rs 1,437-crore agreement signed on March 24, 1986, for the purchase of 400 155 mm howitzer guns from Swedish company AB Bofors. Allegations of illegal commissions emerged in April 1987 after a report by Swedish Radio claimed that kickbacks had been paid to influential Indian politicians and defence officials.

The scandal became one of India's biggest political controversies, dominating public debate and the 1989 general election campaign. Over the years, several accused either secured legal relief or died during the lengthy proceedings, including Italian businessman Ottavio Quattrocchi, alleged middleman Win Chadha, former Bofors president Martin Ardbo and former defence secretary SK Bhatnagar.

With the Supreme Court dismissing the final pending appeal, the Bofors prosecution has now reached its legal conclusion after nearly four decades.