Italian court documents have shown that European middleman Guido Ralph Haschke reportedly alerted British-Italian firm AgustaWestland before the National Democratic Alliance government changed the mandatory flying altitude of VVIP helicopters in 2003. The documents, being examined by the Central Bureau of Investigation, revealed that Haschke tipped off AgustaWestland on October 20, 2003, a month before the government officially recommended the changes, Hindustan Times reported. The change in mandatory flying altitude was decided in a meeting between then prime minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee and his principal secretary on November 19, 2003, the report added.

According to government records, specifications for VVIP helicopters were made in 2005, after the United Progressive Alliance had taken over. Alterations in the specifications were allegedly made to bring AgustaWestland helicopters in contention for the deal. Former Air Force chief SP Tyagi, who has been questioned by the CBI, has been accused of helping the firm win the contract by approving the changes. Tyagi knew that the change in the ceiling limit was being recommended even before he took over as Air Force chief, according to The Indian Express.

The AgustaWestland helicopter deal, which has snowballed into a huge controversy, relates to an agreement in 2010, when the UPA was to buy 12 AW-101 helicopters from the British-Italian firm for around Rs 3,600 crore. The deal was put on hold after Italy arrested the head of Finmeccanica, AgustaWestland’s parent company, on charges that the company paid bribes to win the contract.