New Delhi, November 19: A United Arab Emirates (UAE) court on Monday rejected an appeal of British national, Christian Michel James, one of the key middlemen wanted in India in connection with its probe into Rs 3,600 crore AgustaWestland VVIP chopper deal case, against his extradition to India. The Court of Cassation upheld a lower court order which favoured extradition of Christian Michel.

On Monday, lawyer Abdul Moneim, on behalf of Christian Michel, challenged the lower court's order, saying that courts in Switzerland and Italy had ruled not to extradite his client. According to documents, submitted by Moneim, "the Indian authorities did not follow the proper procedures when requesting the extradition". The extradition procedure happens in coordination with the Interpol and the Criminal Investigation Department. CBI Says It Has Not Questioned AgustaWestland Deal Middleman Christian Michel in UAE.

However, Dubai's highest court dismissed Michel's lawyer's arguments and upheld the lower court's order that his client could be extradited. With the top court's approval, Michel's extradition to India has become almost final. It will now need approval from the UAE Minister of Justice for the extradition procedure to start, reported Times of India.

In September, Dubai's local court had rejected all the contentions raised by Michel's counsel opposing the extradition plea by the Indian authorities. The Enforcement Directorate (ED) had in January lodged a request with the UAE authorities for extraditing Michel. Both the ED and the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) had filed chargesheets in bribery cases in Indian courts and non-bailable warrants had been issued against the accused.

According to Indian investigative agencies, Michel had received at least Rs 235 crore for ensuring that the chopper contract went to AgustaWestland. On January 1, 2014, India cancelled the contract with Finmeccanica's British subsidiary AgustaWestland for supplying 12 AW-101 VVIP choppers to the IAF, over the alleged breach of contractual obligations and on charges of paying kickbacks amounting to Rs 423 crore.

The CBI, which registered an FIR in the case on March 12, 2013, had alleged several persons had received kickbacks from AgustaWestland to help it win the contract.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Nov 19, 2018 08:39 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).