Pawan Hans Helicopters the government decided stringent into the diligence process qualified bidders

A Pawan Hans Helicopter | Photo courtesy: www.planepictures.net
In a highly significant move by the government, emerging news reports reveal that the Modi administration has taken the decision to cancel the strategic disinvestment of Pawan Hans. According to these reports, the winning bidder, Star9 Mobility, has been disqualified due to pending legal cases against the company. In 2022, in a three part investigative series The Probe’s journalists Paranjoy Guha Thakurta, Ravi Nair, and Abir Dasgupta had exposed the glaring discrepancies with the government’s Pawan Hans disinvestment deal.
After our report, the government decided to introduce stringent clauses into the due diligence process for qualified bidders in disinvestment deals of public assets. Now, finally, the government has called off the disinvestment deal and disqualified the winning bidder, Star9 Mobility, due to pending legal cases against the firm.
On May 28 2022, The Probe, in an investigative report, revealed details about the link between Almas Global Opportunity Fund and a “notorious”, “Corrupt” Zimbabwean businessman to India’s Pawan Hans disinvestment deal. The three journalists exposed the complex web of companies that links the controversial Zimbabwean businessman Kudakwashe Regimond Tagwirei to AGOF, the largest stakeholder in Star9 Mobility consortium, which was declared the winner by the government.