Villagers carry the coffin of an Indian soldier in Uri near Srinagar. (Reuters file picture)

New Delhi, Jan. 2: Defence minister George Fernandes has asked his ministry’s officials to wipe the dust off imported aluminium caskets and let the army use them to transport its dead with dignity, highly placed sources have said.

The caskets have been kept in a godown since the Comptroller and Auditor General questioned the decision to import them in a December 2001 report and the Opposition alleged in Parliament that a nexus led by Fernandes was making money over the dead bodies of soldiers.

Fernandes continues to be officially boycotted in Parliament by the Opposition. But he has told ministry officials that “the army’s desire to give the soldier killed in action a decent parting from this world must be fulfilled”.

The defence minister is understood to have initiated steps to resolve the issue and has consistently maintained that he had no hand in the deal.

The queries on the coffin deal were raised in the CAG report that asked why the aluminium caskets were contracted for around $2000 apiece when they were available for $172 each.

The defence ministry has begun efforts to clarify its position again to stave off criticism. Since the row erupted, the caskets have been kept in a godown and not been used. Sources close to Fernandes said not using the caskets was a waste.

The army had projected a need for 500 caskets in the wake of the Kargil war when the bodies of soldiers killed in action were transported in wooden coffins that leaked and presented gory sights.

An Indian Army officer with the UN Peacekeeping Force in Somalia had suggested that the government should consider using aluminium caskets that were being used by the UN force. The suggestion was taken up by higher authorities and the decision to import the caskets was finally made, the sources said.

The sources added that the allegation that the caskets were overweight was borne out of an oversight in the specifications for the coffins. “18' (gauge) became 18 kgs”, they said. It was also pointless to have such re-usable caskets manufactured in the country because the cost of manufacturing would be much more than the cost of importing.

Whatever the defence ministry’s justifications to use the caskets, the Opposition continues to maintain that the deal was unsavoury.

The decision to import the caskets was made in a hurry, the sources said, because of the demand during the Kargil war, even if the caskets actually reached India after the war.

The CAG report that indicted the government on the coffin deal also pointed out other irregularities in defence purchases but the coffin deal continues to stink because it has been turned into an emotive and political issue.