Bofors Case Finally Ends After 40 Years: Supreme Court Shuts Last Legal Door
- pradeep
- 1 day ago
- 2 min read
The Supreme Court has dismissed the last surviving appeal connected to the Bofors case, effectively bringing an end to one of India’s longest-running and most politically consequential defence-corruption controversies.
The appeal challenged a 2005 Delhi High Court judgment that had quashed criminal proceedings against the Hinduja brothers and Swedish arms manufacturer AB Bofors. With the Supreme Court refusing to revive the matter, no active challenge to that order now remains.
Supreme Court Asks: How Many Years Have Passed?
A bench of Justices J.B. Pardiwala and K. Vinod Chandran declined to grant additional time to private appellant advocate Ajay K. Agrawal, whose petition had remained pending since 2018.
The judges noted that the criminal proceedings had already been quashed decades earlier and questioned why the case was still being pursued after so many years.
What Was the Bofors Deal?
India signed a ₹1,437 crore agreement with Swedish arms manufacturer AB Bofors on March 24, 1986, for the purchase of 400 FH-77B 155mm howitzers for the Indian Army.
In April 1987, Swedish Radio alleged that illegal commissions had been paid to secure the contract. The scandal later centred on allegations involving approximately ₹64 crore in commissions, reportedly routed through foreign agents and companies.
Rajiv Gandhi Government Faced Political Fallout
Then Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi denied wrongdoing, but the allegations became a major political issue. A Joint Parliamentary Committee later gave his government a clean chit, yet the controversy continued to dominate national politics.
Former defence minister V.P. Singh made Bofors a central issue in the 1989 general election, in which Congress lost power and Singh subsequently became Prime Minister.
What Happened to the Criminal Case?
The CBI registered its first FIR in 1990, naming several people and entities over allegations including conspiracy, cheating, forgery and corruption. Later chargesheets named alleged middlemen, AB Bofors and the Hinduja brothers.
In 2004, the Delhi High Court cleared Rajiv Gandhi posthumously of criminal culpability. In 2005, the High Court quashed charges against the Hinduja brothers and AB Bofors, while sharply criticising the prosecution.
The court also noted that the investigation had cost the exchequer nearly ₹250 crore.
CBI’s Own Appeal Was Rejected in 2018
The Supreme Court had already dismissed the CBI’s challenge to the 2005 judgment in November 2018, after the agency failed to satisfactorily explain a delay of 4,522 days in filing its appeal.
With the private appellant’s petition now dismissed as well, the 2005 High Court order faces no remaining live legal challenge.
The Guns Later Proved Crucial in Kargil
Despite the political controversy surrounding the procurement, the Bofors FH-77B howitzers played a significant role during the 1999 Kargil War, helping Indian forces target Pakistani positions on strategic heights.
The guns remain in service with the Indian Army even decades after they were acquired.
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