By: Vivek Raghuvanshi
NEW DELHI — India will not implement blanket blacklisting of foreign defense companies charged with corruption under a newly finalized policy that likely will be made public this month, said an Indian Ministry of Defence (MoD) official.
Since 2005, India has blacklisted six overseas companies from operating here in response to allegations of corruption while doing business in the country. Instead of blocking a business from defense deals, India will impose an economic penalty on the company.
The MoD official would not say if those companies already blacklisted will be allowed to participate in future defense projects after the new policy is enacted. However, the official did say the MoD is in favor of allowing those companies to participate in defense projects so long as they agree to deferred prosecution. The official would not expand on this approach.
The ruling government believes the blanket blacklisting policy, which was used by the previous United Progressive Alliance government, led to shortages of ammunition and artillery guns and hampered the acquisition process, according to the official.
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