New Delhi: Italy has sounded India to withdraw the Interpol's Red Corner Notice against Ottavio Quattrocchi, a key accused in the Bofors pay-offs case, and hand over the evidence against him.

Though Italy has given nothing in writing to this effect, informed sources said it conveyed to the Indian side during recent consultations on finalising the itinerary of Silvio Berlusconi, the Italian Prime Minister, due to visit India in the next few weeks.

The Italian suggestion has come as a surprise to the Indian side, as Italy is not even willing to confirm the whereabouts of Quattrocchi who had left Malaysia in December 2002 after the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) has failed to secure his extradition from that country.

In the absence of any acknowledgement by Italians that Quattrocchi, who had lived in New Delhi for several years as the representative of an Italian company, is living in Italy, the CBI is unable to even move for his extradition from there. Therefore, Interpol has put out a Red Corner Notice against him at the behest of CBI.

When Quattrocchi was facing extradition proceedings in Malaysia, Berlusconi had spoken to his Malaysian counterpart Mahathir Mohammed, who had publicly acknowledged this but maintained that he would not interfere.

The Italian side is understood to have suggested that CBI should handover all the evidence to it for Quattrocchi's trial there as the Italian law prohibited extradition of any of its national.

They also requested the CBI to withdraw the Interpol Red Corner Notice, a move, which the investigating agency has rejected prima-facie, the sources said.

A London bank had in July frozen Quattrocchi's two accounts having deposits of three million Pounds (Rs 21 crore) at the behest of CBI, which alleged that the money was a part of ill-gotten money from the Bofors deal.

The Italian businessman has protested to the British authorities against freezing of his accounts.

Quattrocchi has maintained in the past that he is not involved in Bofors payoffs and that he was being targeted for political reasons.

PTI