AgustaWestland VVIP chopper scam: Never met Sonia Gandhi in my life, says alleged middleman James Christian Michel

New Delhi: The accused middleman in the 3,600-crore VVIP chopper deal, James Christian Michel, on Tuesday said he had never met Congress president Sonia Gandhi or any other "Gandhi" in his life. "I have never ever met any single Gandhi ever in my life... If I had met them you could say well you must have discussed something. Well I haven’t met them. Not a phone call, a letter, a message, a mention of me in a memo," he told The Hindu in an interview. On Tuesday the Congress rejected the accusations levelled against the party in the deal in the backdrop of media reports that an Italian court, which has convicted Augusta Westland chief Giuseppe Orsi, has reportedly referred to how the firm paid bribes to top Congress leaders to bag the Rs 3,600 crore deal. About allegations against Sonia Gandhi and former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh in the matter, Congress leader Anand Sharma on Tuesday said, "We reject them with the contempt they deserve". "No one should be making loose comments against Congress President and Manmohan Singh whose integrity and intellect was never in question," he said. Italian group Finmeccanica's former chief Giuseppe Orsi and AgustaWestland's former head Bruno Spagnolini were sentenced by a Milan appeals court to jail terms for false accounting and corruption in the sale of the firm's 12 VVIP choppers to India. Also Read: Ex-IAF chief denies wrongdoing, says chopper deal was a collective decision While Orsi was given four and a half years in jail, Spagnolini was awarded a four-year jail term. Three of the helicopters were delivered to the Indian Air Force before the contract -- signed in February 2010 -- was cancelled. The IAF sought the AgustaWestland choppers as a replacement for its Mi-17 cargo helicopters that have been modified for VVIP deployment. The Comptroller and Auditor General had made adverse comments, saying it was a waste of resources. (With inputs from agencies)