ED submitted chargesheet last year; Sanjay Bhandari charged with conspiracy in Pilatus deal.
ED submitted chargesheet last year; Sanjay Bhandari charged with conspiracy in Pilatus deal.

The Delhi High Court heard the case involving arms dealer Sanjay Bhandari on Wednesday. The court declined to suspend the current proceedings against Bhandari. He is facing a case under PMLA and FEO. At the hearing, the court stated that it is unnecessary to invoke extraordinary jurisdiction for this case.

The court indicated that it seems Sanjay Bhandari has been found guilty. As he did not provide his address in the United Kingdom in the petition, it appears to be an effort to engage in a proxy war.

In December of the previous year, the ED submitted a chargesheet for this case. In addition to Bhandari, the names of two other individuals were also included in this chargesheet. The chargesheet issued by the ED also referenced Robert Vadra, the husband of Congress General Secretary Priyanka Gandhi. In the chargesheet, the ED informed the court that CC Thampi, employed by Sanjay Bhandari, was connected to Robert Vadra.

CBI had similarly charged Sanjay Bhandari alongside officials from the Defence Ministry and Indian Air Force in the Pilatus Aircraft case involving the Swiss firm. This agreement was made in 2009, in which 75 trainer aircraft were to be provided to the Air Force. The CBI claims that Pilatus conspired with Sanjay Bhandari and Vimal Sarin, the director of Offset India Solution Pvt. Ltd.

Prior to engaging in arms dealing, Sanjay Bhandari traded luxury automobiles. He would import luxury cars from overseas and sell them to affluent individuals locally. Through this work, he engaged with political figures and subsequently began trading in arms. To achieve this, he established a company that attended arms exhibitions and engaged in lobbying for a commission.