Bofors Case Ends: Supreme Court Dismisses Petition Against Hinduja Brothers

Supreme Court Rejects Plea, Draws Curtain on Decades-Old Bofors Case

The Supreme Court on Thursday dismissed a petition seeking to challenge the 2005 Delhi High Court judgment that had quashed criminal proceedings against the Hinduja brothers and Swedish defence company AB Bofors in the Bofors corruption case, effectively bringing the decades-old legal saga to a close.

A Bench comprising Justice JB Pardiwala and Justice K. Vinod Chandran declined to entertain the appeal filed by advocate Ajay K. Agrawal, observing that there was no merit in reopening a matter that had already been settled by the courts.

During the hearing, the petitioner sought four weeks to amend the plea by removing the names of Srichand P. Hinduja and Gopichand P. Hinduja, both of whom have passed away. The Bench rejected the request, making it clear that the proceedings could not be prolonged any further.

Justice Pardiwala also questioned the purpose of continuing the litigation, noting that the Delhi High Court had quashed the case in 2005 and the CBI’s subsequent appeal against that verdict had already been dismissed by the Supreme Court.

Why the High Court Quashed the Case

In its landmark judgment delivered on May 31, 2005, the Delhi High Court discharged Srichand, Gopichand and Prakash Hinduja, along with AB Bofors, from all criminal charges related to the alleged kickbacks in the 1986 howitzer deal.

The court ruled that the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) had failed to establish any direct involvement of the Hinduja brothers in the arms contract or prove that the money allegedly received by them constituted illegal commissions.

It also found serious flaws in the prosecution’s evidence, observing that key documents obtained from Swedish authorities were neither original nor authenticated. Relying on such material, the court said, would be unfair to the accused and amount to a waste of public resources.

The High Court had also criticised the CBI’s investigation, which reportedly cost the exchequer nearly ₹250 crore, before discharging the accused and ordering the return of their bail bonds.

Earlier Setback to the CBI

Attempts to revive the case had already suffered a major setback in 2018, when the Supreme Court dismissed the CBI’s appeal against the Delhi High Court ruling, citing an unexplained delay of 4,522 days in filing the challenge.

Background of the Bofors Scandal

The Bofors controversy dates back to March 24, 1986, when India signed a ₹1,437-crore contract with Swedish arms manufacturer AB Bofors for the supply of 400 howitzers. The deal snowballed into a major political controversy in 1987 after reports alleged that illegal commissions had been paid to influential Indian intermediaries, politicians and defence officials to secure the contract.

With Thursday’s order, the Supreme Court has effectively shut the door on any further attempt to revive criminal proceedings against the Hinduja brothers and AB Bofors, bringing one of India’s longest-running legal and political controversies to an end.