CBI files withdrawal report in Quattrocchi case

The CBI today approached Delhi HC seeking closure of Bofors payoff case against Italian businessman Ottavio Quattrocchi setting the stage for legal burial of over two-decade old lawsuits against him. Timeline of events

The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) on Saturday sought withdrawal of Italian businessman Ottavio Quattrocchi's name from the Bofors gun deal payoff case.

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Filing an application under Section 321 of the Criminal Procedure Code (CrPC) in the court of Chief Metropolitan Magistrate Kaveri Baweja, the CBI counsel said in New Delhi that Quattrocchi's name should be removed from the trial that has been going on for over 19 years.

The court will hear arguments on Oct 9 to decide if it will drop Quattrocchi's name from the case.

Additional Solicitor General P P Malhotra made it clear to the court that the CBI is not filing any closure report in the case but is filing an application under Section 321 of the CrPC.

The CBI submitted that since there is no concrete evidence against Quattrocchi, any case against him is unjustified.

The city court was hearing the matter after Quattrocchi's name was withdrawn from the list of wanted persons by CBI last year.

Quattrocchi, the lone prominent surviving suspect in the case, was known to be close to the family of late Rajiv Gandhi who was prime minister in 1987 when the Bofors bribery scandal broke.