NEW DELHI, March 9: An Indian arms broker who has been accused of taking kickbacks to help seal a defence deal with Israel seven years ago was arrested on tax evasion charges at the weekend, a report said on Sunday.

Suresh Nanda, one of several people accused of corruption in an 11.5 billion-rupee ($288 million) deal clinched with Israel in 2000, was arrested late Saturday, the Press Trust of India reported.

Nanda’s son, a tax accountant and an income tax official were also arrested by India’s Central Bureau of Investigation at a hotel in the financial hub Mumbai, the report said.

The four were arrested on charges of cooking Nanda’s account books, PTI said.

Nanda, the son of a former Indian navy chief, was interrogated about his finances by the agency in January, which is trying to trace a money trail back to the deal to purchase seven Barak anti-ship missile systems from Israel Aircraft Industries Ltd.Investigators believe Nanda received about $100,000 in kickbacks in the deal.

A sting operation in 2001 allegedly caught a political party treasurer admitting on tape that money changed hands over the deal and led to corruption charges being brought against a former defence minister.

The Barak corruption scandal is one of several dogging India’s defence procurement process.

An Indian court in December ordered police to complete a probe into charges that a bribe was paid in a three-billion-dollar deal to buy Scorpene submarines from a French defence firm.

That same month India said it was scrapping a $600-million deal to buy 197 military helicopters from the European Aeronautic Defence and Space Company (EADS) after allegations of irregularities in the bidding process.

India banned middlemen in military deals following charges of bribery in a multi-billion-dollar artillery deal in the 1980s with Swedish firm Bofors.

But even as the Barak investigation continues, India and Israel have deepened their military cooperation.—AFP