Deeptiman Tiwary TNN
New Delhi: The case of a military equipment trader under investigation by the National Investigation Agency (NIA) for allegedly procuring night vision equipment for left wing ultras has taken a rather curious turn.
While the NIA FIR said there were suspicions that some consignments may have earlier been diverted to Maoists, the agency has neither found any evidence to that effect nor has it been established that seized cartons of night vision equipment recently procured were headed to the red corridor. The company, however, has been found to have forged letters in Jharkhand government’s name to procure the consignment.
NIA now suspects that there is more to the case than meets the eye and that someone from the government may have a role to play in this jigsaw puzzle.
To complicate matters, it has come to light that the company, which has offices both in Delhi and Bangalore, is an old hand in equipment procurement and a trusted importer of the central government. In fact, both armed and paramilitary forces have regularly imported military grade equipment through the company.
Curiously, the ministry of home affairs had recommended import of passive night vision goggles and night vision device with goggle worth Rs 32.5 lakh through the company in end-2011.
“As yet there is no evidence of the night vision equipment going to Naxalites. It is very surprising that a company trusted by government would indulge in something like this. We haven’t had much cooperation from the accused so we are trying to find out what was the need to forge documents,” said an NIA official. The NIA FIR has charged the company with waging war against the country apart from cheating.
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