Tyagi was questioned by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) on Monday in connection with the Rs 3,726-crore VVIP chopper scam.
Former Indian Air Force (IAF) chief S P Tyagi is alleged to have met AgustaWestland middlemen seven times - from 2004 to 2007 - and travelled to Italy thrice after his retirement.
Tyagi was questioned by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) on Monday in connection with the Rs 3,726-crore VVIP chopper scam.
The alleged meetings between the former Air Chief Marshal and AgustaWestland middlemen took place first when he was air vice-chief and then as chief of Air Force.
The CBI claims that it was when he was IAF chief that Tyagi allegedly tailored chopper specifications to favour AgustaWestland, one of the four global vendors in talks with the defence ministry.
CBI sources said that it was in 2004, when Tyagi was vice-chief, that Finmeccanica approached him for the first time. Later, when it was announced that Tyagi was next in line for chief, Agusta middlemen Guido Haschke and Carlo Gerosa held some more meetings with him.
The middlemen again met him at an air show in Bengaluru, where AgustaWestland had put up a stall. Another meeting with the middlemen took place at the office of one of Tyagi's cousins, who is also charge-sheeted by the CBI.
Along with Tyagi, his three cousins -- Sanjeev, Rajiv and Sandeep -- have been accused of lobbying for AgustaWestland.
CBI sources allege that in one meeting on March 7, 2005, Tyagi, as air chief, changed the specifications. Following his retirement, Tyagi is said to have travelled to three places in Italy- Florence, Milan and Venice. The CBI is looking behind the reasons for Tyagi's travel.
Agency sources added that the three cousins, known as Tyagi brothers, will be summoned in the coming weeks, along with Gautam Khaitan, a lawyer, who has also been accused in the scam, in which Rs350 crore were allegedly paid as kickback.
In 2004, the Tyagi brothers, who made acquaintances with Guido Hasheesh and Carlo Gerosa, signed a consultancy contract with Gordian Services Sarl in Tunisia. After May 2004, 1,26,000 euros and 2 lakh euros after February 2005, camouflaged as consultancy fee, were paid to Tyagi brothers and some of the money was allegedly paid off to Tyagi himself.
In 20102, the defence ministry made a deal for AgustaWestland choppers. One mandatory requirement was that the service ceiling (height of flying capacity) must be 6,000 metres. Even though AgustaWestland declared that its EH-101 helicopters had a service ceiling of only 4,572 metres, it was cleared for flight trials on the grounds that Agusta would bring helicopters to 6,000 metres.
Not only did Agusta not increase the service ceiling, but the flying capacity of the choppers was brought down from 6,000 to 4,500 metres. This was done even after reservations by the previous NDA regime and the IAF, which had, on multiple occasions, disapproved of reducing the ceiling height.
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
 "Tyagi")
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
)
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
)
)
)
)
)
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}