Christian Michel Tries to Clear Congress of AgustaWestland Blame

AgustaWestland middleman Christian Michel James claims that he is defending Congress to defend his own name.

Screenshot of the interview of Christian Michel James with NDTV in Dubai on Thursday, 12 May 2016.

AgustaWestland middleman Christian Michel is speaking to the Indian media after he was named in the VVIP chopper deal case. He is leaving no stone unturned in naming the other middleman in the deal, Guido Haschke.

Speaking to NDTV, Michel tried to clear the name of Congress members.

I have to rescue them to rescue myself. If they weren’t part of the deal, I wouldn’t be a part of this.

Christian Michel, Middleman, AgustaWestland VVIP Chopper Deal

Following are highlights from the interview to Barkha Dutt and Sudhir Ranjan Sen:

• Michel didn’t travel to Italy to authenticate the document, which proved a payment of 44 million euros, as he feared getting arrested.
  
• Some of the people named (Army officers) were involved in the initial implementation of the deal. But no further.
  
• Subramanian Swamy, a good friend of Michel’s father, claimed that the height of the chopper made the deal exclusive to AgustaWestland. However, the height can be matched or exceeded by any company.
  
• Michel claims to have never met anyone from the Congress party. He, however, met ex-IAF chief SP Tyagi at the Gymkhana Club.
  
• A 2008 note naming Sonia Gandhi as the driving force behind the deal was sent by Michel’s office. Michel named her as it was a part of his job to identify influential people to ensure fluid deals.
  
• Michel said that during a phone call, Hacshke said that, “If [lawyer Gautum] Khaitan talks, we’ll be skinned alive.” Michel suspects that Khaitan knows something that is protecting someone very important in Italy.
  
• Michel believes that even if SP Tyagi received money, it was to cover-up Haschke.
  
• Michel would “be most happy if the CBI or the ED came to Dubai”. He says he needs to give documents essential to the case “in the right hands”.