Finmeccanica to attend Aero India show, not AgustaWestland

New Delhi, Feb 9 (IANS) Although tainted in a scam involving VVIP helicopters, Italian firm Finmeccanica will be present at the Aero India show in Bengaluru, a year after being asked to leave the military exhibition Defexpo. AgustaWestland will, however, not come to the show.

Asked about blacklisted firms being allowed at the Aero India show, secretary for defence production G. Mohan Kumar said the ministry has stopped no one from coming to the show.

"We have not stopped anyone from attending the show," he said at a press conference Monday.

"We have a very clear policy on that. Scam-tainted companies are blacklisted with respect to procurements. This is totally different. This is an industrial-type event and we are not preventing anyone from participating," he said.

Last January India kept over 12 defence firms out of Defexpo 2014. Finmeccanica was asked to leave the expo at the last minute.

Special Secretary for defence procurement Ashok Gupta said that while blacklisted companies were not participating on their own, some companies which have first information reports registered, or CBI probe going on against them, will participate.

"There are certain companies which are blacklisted and have not come on their own," he said.