“CBI found nothing against me”: Praful Patel opens up on closure report in Air India ‘scam’, ‘washing machine’ jibe

New Delhi [India], May 1 (ANI): Clapping back at his detractors, who have often taken potshots at him over his decision to join the ruling BJP-led NDA in the state, and have also directed their pet ‘washing machine’ jab at him; senior Nationalist Congress Party (Ajit Pawar faction) leader Praful Patel claimed there was no case against him in connection with the Air India leasing ‘scam’.

In an interview with ANI, the senior NCP leader dwelt at length on the alleged scam that broke during his term as the Civil Aviation Minister under the Congress-led UPA and the CBI filing a closure report in the case recently, saying that the case was closed as the premier central investigating agency found ‘nothing’ against him during their probe in the matter.

“According to the CBI manual, when a case is registered with the agency, the names of the accused have to be entered. However, there was no case against me. I was the Civil Aviation Minister at the time (the alleged scam broke) and the CBI wouldn’t have filed a closure report in the case if they had found anything against me. The case was against particular individuals and Air India is a public sector corporation. The Ministry does not have direct control of the carrier. Well, I headed the nodal ministry at the time, we didn’t hold ownership of the airline concerned. Certain allegations were made and a case was filed on the basis of a PIL. And, as you are aware, plenty of PILs were filed at the time,” Patel told ANI.

Asserting that he wasn’t involved in ‘anything wrong’, the NCP leader added, “These are unfounded allegations. There are allegations and there is the truth. Any allegation can be levelled but it has to be supported with evidence. The CBI found nothing against me. Are there any cases registered against me…either by the CBI or ED? There’s none. I can speak with absolute confidence that neither me nor anyone in my family was involved in any wrongdoing.”

Patek added that the decision on the controversial leasing of aircraft for Air India was not taken by him in an individual capacity but a committee that featured many members of the central cabinet.

He also highlighted the roles of former President Pranab Mukherjee and former Finance Minister and Congress leader P Chidambaram in the matter.

“What is wrong with a merger? I am surprised. Now Tata has bought Air India. They are going to merge Vistara with Air India. They have merged Air Asia with Air India Express. Back in the day, Kingfisher merged with Deccan while Jet Airways merged with Sahara. What is wrong with the merging of two airlines? What is so wrong about two airline companies becoming a single entity?” he said.

“The decision wasn’t taken by me alone but a committee featuring several members of the Union cabinet at the time. It wasn’t a case of Praful Patel saying or doing something in his individual capacity (as the former Civil Aviation Minister). The decision was taken after extensive deliberations in the Cabinet. It went through an empowered group of ministers headed by none other than (former President) Pranab Mukherjee, and also having Chidambaram and many other ministers (as members),” Patel said.

On his personal relationships transcending party politics, Patel said he has looked to maintain good ties at a ‘personal level’.

He claimed that undivided NCP supremo Sharad Pawar had a “not so great” relationship with Congress in the past, “especially with the Gandhi family”, while he maintained good relationships with BJP veterans, including Atal Bihari Vajpayee and LK Advani, among others.

“I maintained relationships at a personal level with many people, even those in the BJP (when he was in the undivided NCP). While it is only recently that we joined hands with the BJP as a partner in the NDA, my warm and cordial ties with Prime Minister Narendra Modi-ji goes back a long time. I maintained healthy ties with Amit Shah-ji, Devendra Fadnavis, Nitin Gadkari, Rajnath-ji and even Nadda-ji even when we were not part of the same alliance. I always made it a point to maintain good ties (outside his immediate political circles),” Patel told ANI.

“I think in politicis, we may have a line of political ideology or a thought process but at an interpersonal level, one should never face situations where you can’t talk or sit together or have a meal together or have a free and frank conversation. That should never be the case. And that’s where I learnt a little bit from Sharad Pawar-ji also. He used to enjoy wonderful relationships with Vajpayee-ji, Advani-ji, Jaswant Singh-ji, and Narendra Modi sahab. If there’s one relationship that wasn’t great, it was with the Congress, especially with the Gandhi family,” he added.

Also claiming a trust deficit between the Congress and Sharad Pawar, the NCP leader said, “I know Mr Pawar is not one of the people that the Congress party or especially the Gandhi family ever want to trust. So that has always been the hallmark, which is why Mr Pawar, while allying with the Congress (earlier), has had a rebellious streak in him,” he said.

Earlier, in March, the CBI filed a closure report before a special CBI court in Delhi in the alleged Air India scam case, registered in 2017 following a Supreme Court directive.

The case pertained to allegations of irregularities in leasing aircraft for Air India.

Several officials of the Ministry of Civil Aviation and Air India were under scanner in the matter.

It was alleged that the then Civil Aviation Minister, Praful Patel, under the United Progressive Alliance (UPA) government, abused his position in leasing a large number of aircraft for Air India, which was a public carrier at the time.

The closure report drew criticism from Congress and other opposition parties as it came months after Patel and several other senior leaders of the undivided Nationalist Congress Party joined hands with the BJP.

The Ajit Pawar-led faction is currently part of the ruling tripartite Mahayuti alliance in Maharashtra, which also comprises the BJP and the Shiv Sena led by Chief Minister Eknath Shinde.