Luxury bus controversy- Gadkari’s office rejects baseless allegations of Scania Paying Bribe

New Delhi, March 11: As to the Scania luxury bus row, while certain wild allegations are levelled by a section of foreign media dragging the name of Union Minister of Road Transport and Highways, Nitin Gadkari and his family, it has already been stated by Minister's office that these accusations are malicious, fabricated and baseless.

 

“The media allegations that in November 2016, Scania delivered a luxury bus to a company that had close ties with Gadkari’s sons are malicious, fabricated and baseless. And the allegations that the bus was not paid for and was used for the wedding of Gadkari’s daughter is nothing but media fiction,” said a statement issued by the office read.

 

 

The report published by Swedish news channel SVT claims that the incident allegedly happened in late 2016 when a luxury bus was sold through a private Scania reseller or dealer, who in turn sold or leased the bus to a company with connections to Gadkari’s sons. Further according to the SVT report, the financing was handled by Volkswagen’s finance company and that Scania’s CEO confirmed that the Scania reimbursed Volkswagen for the part of the sum that the Gadkari-linked company did not pay.

 

 

In an email response to queries from one of the newspaper organisations, Scania said the company did sell the Scania Metrolink bus to one of its Bengaluru-based dealers called Transpro Motors, which in turn sold it to a company named Sudarshan Hospitality, which it said, was an Indian bus operator. Sudarshan Hospitality is based out of Nagpur.

 

 

The company denied sending any bus to Gadkari for personal use. "The media reports that the bus was financed by a Volkswagen finance company, but Scania stepped into pay for the part that the above-mentioned company did not, that itself contradicts that the bus was a gift to Shri Gadkari,” read the statement, further adding “Gadkari and his family members have absolutely nothing to do with the purchase or sale of the bus. Nor do they have anything to do with any firm or individual who might be linked with the purchase or sale of the bus.”

 

 

Gadkari’s office clarified that the minister was a pioneer in introducing Scania’s Ethanol-run bus in Nagpur as a part of his drive to bring in green public transport in India. It said Gadkari encouraged the Nagpur Municipal Corporation to initiate a pilot project and the Nagpur civic body signed a commercial MOU with the Swedish company.

 

“Accordingly, Scania’s Ethanol-operated buses started plying in Nagpur. It was purely a commercial arrangement between the Nagpur civic body and the Swedish bus manufacturers and Shri Gadkari and his family had nothing to do with it,” it said. About the deal with NMC, the company said 55 buses used for trial were returned to it. “These public transport buses were delivered to NMC and were returned to Scania India after the trial was finished. All of the in total 55 ethanol buses ordered by NMC have been returned to Scania India.”

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