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Tag: Rafale deal

  • Delivery of Rafale jets to India will be completed by April 2022: French envoy

    By PTI

    MUMBAI: Thirty Rafale fighter jets manufactured by French firm Dassault Aviation have been delivered to India so far and the remaining six will be handed over by April 2022 as part of an inter-governmental agreement signed five years ago, Ambassador of France Emmanuel Lenain said on Thursday.

    He said it is a matter of pride for France that despite the COVID-19 pandemic which forced factories to close down for weeks, it was able to deliver the aircraft on time.

    “In France, teams have been working extra shifts. They have been working nights and weekends sometimes to be able to fulfil the commitment. That is what trust is about.”

    “As of today, 29 (jets) have been ferried to India and 30 have been delivered to India. We are fully on time and we are going to reach the target of having all 36 delivered by April of next year,” Lenain said.

    ALSO READ | BJP-Congress slugfest on new Rafale pay-off report

    The envoy said India and France have been cooperating for decades in the field of defence.

    Fighter jets are first handed over to the Indian Air Force in France and they are later flown to India.

    The first batch of five Rafale jets arrived in India on July 29 last year.

    In 2016, India and France signed an inter-governmental agreement under which Paris is to provide 36 Rafale fighter jets to New Delhi.

    The Rs 58,000-crore deal invited criticism from the opposition, particularly the Congress which has alleged financial irregularities while procuring the fighter jets.

    ​ALSO READ | Operation cover-up by Modi government in Rafale deal once again exposed: Congress

    The Centre has repeatedly denied any financial irregularity in purchase of the multi-role combat aircraft.

    French investigative portal Mediapart, in fresh revelations, has alleged bogus invoices were used that enabled Dassault Aviation to pay at least 7.5 million euros in secret commissions to a middleman to help it secure the Rafale deal with India.

    When asked about the recent revelations by Mediapart, the French envoy declined to comment.

    Lenain was speaking during his visit to the French navy’s air defence destroyer ‘Chevalier Paul’, which arrived in Mumbai on Thursday.

    The Chevalier Paul, a Horizon-class air defence destroyer, is currently deployed in the Indian Ocean as part of France’s permanent military presence in the region.

    Defence is an important pillar of the India-France relationship and the two countries have been cooperating for decades now, Lenain said.

    “It (the port call of the ship to Mumbai) is a nice symbol of our joint commitment to ensure security and freedom of navigation in the Indo-Pacific region,” he added.

  • ‘Rafale kickback happened during Congress regime’: BJP retorts as row erupts over new report

    By Express News Service

    NEW DELHI: A political slugfest has been reignited in India after French portal Mediapart’s report on alleged kickbacks paid between 2007 and 2012 to a middleman involved in the Rafale deal, and on the CBI allegedly failing to probe these charges despite having the relevant documents.

    The Congress accused the Modi government of conducting an operation to “cover-up” corruption in the Rafale fighter jet deal and asked why it did not initiate an investigation into the role of a middleman despite recovering incriminating documents from him.

    Party spokesperson Pawan Khera alleged that the BJP government has sacrificed national security, jeopardised the interests of the Indian Air Force and caused loss worth thousands of crores of rupees to the state exchequer.

    French investigative journal Mediapart in fresh revelations in a report has exposed how middleman Sushen Gupta got hold of confidential documents belonging to the Indian Negotiating Team (INT) in 2015 from the ministry of defence, he said.

    The documents detailed the stance of Indian negotiators during the final lap of negotiation and in particular how they calculated the price of the aircraft. This gave a clear advantage to Dassault Aviation (Rafale), Khera claimed, citing the Mediapart report.

    Meanwhile, the national spokesperson of the BJP Sambit Patra slammed the Congress, which was in power between 2007 and 2012, for corruption in the Rafale deal and termed INC (Indian National Congress) as “I need commission”.

    Addressing a press conference at BJP headquarters, Patra said, “We all saw the way the opposition parties, especially the Congress party, tried to create a false atmosphere regarding Rafale before the 2019 elections. They felt that this would give him some political advantage.”

    “Today, we are going to put some important documents in front of you, so that it gives a clear picture on whose era the corruption happened. A French media organization some time ago revealed that there was corruption in Rafale. This whole matter happened between 2007 to 2012,” he added.

    Slamming the Congress party, Patra said, “Indian National Congress, in my opinion, should be renamed ‘I need commission’.”

    “We had seen kind of canards spread by Congress leader Rahul Gandhi and Congress before 2019 elections. Congress had done press conferences against PM Narendra Modi and BJP about allegations of corruption. Rafale was a story of commission. The article published in France media talks about Dassault aviation and 7.5 million euros, 65 crores rupees commission was paid by it. A middle man was paid this amount. At least, 7.5 million euros were paid, as per the article. This article states that a maximum of 11 million euros was paid as commission to SM Gupta. His name surfaced in the AugustaWestland case. This is not just a coincidence. There is a conspiracy. Rest, I believe is a matter of investigation,” he said.

    Patra further said that Rahul Gandhi is perhaps in Italy currently and should reply from there on how this corruption was done during the UPA tenure.

    “The Indian Air force required these aircraft and this deal was kept pending for 10 years. There was no conclusion of negotiations,” he said.

    “The article mentioned three words like corruption, influence peddling and favouritism. Congress is double-faced,” the BJP spokesperson said. 

  • Operation cover-up by Modi government in Rafale deal once again exposed: Congress

    By PTI

    NEW DELHI: The Congress on Tuesday accused the Modi government of conducting an operation to “cover-up” corruption in the Rafale fighter jet deal and asked why it did not initiate investigation into the role of a middleman despite recovering incriminating documents from him.

    Congress spokesperson Pawan Khera also alleged that the BJP government has sacrificed national security, jeopardised the interests of the Indian Air Force and caused loss worth thousands of crores of rupees to the state exchequer.

    French investigative journal Mediapart in fresh revelations in a report has exposed how middleman Sushen Gupta got hold of confidential documents belonging to the Indian Negotiating Team (INT) in 2015 from the ministry of defence, he said.

    The documents detailed the stance of Indian negotiators during the final lap of negotiation and in particular how they calculated the price of the aircraft. This gave clear advantage to Dassault Aviation (Rafale), Khera claimed, citing the Mediapart report.

    ALSO READ| INC should be named ‘I need commission’: BJP’s jibe at Congress on Rafale row

    “The ‘operation cover-up’ by the Modi government to bury the melting pot of corruption, kickbacks and collusion in Rafale deal is once again exposed. The BJP government undermined national security, jeopardised the interests of the Indian Air Force and caused loss worth thousands of crores to our exchequer,” Khera said at a press confrence.

    Each revelation in the “murky affair in the last five years, every single allegation and each piece of the puzzle leads right up to the topmost leadership of the country- the prime minister’s doorstep”, he said.

    Khera alleged that the latest revelations in “operation cover-up” reveal the “dubious nexus” between the Modi government-CBI-ED to bury the corruption in the Rafale deal. The Congress leader asked whether it is not correct that the Enforcement Directorate (ED) recovered “secret defence ministry documents” from the middlemen in a raid conducted on March 26, 2019.

    The documents, he claimed, included the ‘benchmark price document’ of August 10, 2015, the ‘record of discussions’ by the INT of the defence ministry, the ‘excel sheet of calculations made by defence ministry’ and ‘Eurofighter’s counter offer of 20 per cent discount to government of India’.

    Khera alleged that a note of June 24, 2014, sent to Dassault by Gupta, offering a meeting with “the political high command” was also recovered and asked if such a meeting had taken place with the “high command” in the Modi government. “This is nothing short of endangering national security, sedition and a gross violation of Official’s Secrets Act,” he alleged.

    “Why did the ED not pursue these evidences further to investigate the scam? Why did the Modi government then not take action against Dassault, the political executive or the defence ministry officers who leaked the documents? Which ‘Chowkidar’ sold India’s national secrets,” Khera asked.

    The Congress leader also alleged that Prime Minister Modi abrogated the anti-corruption clauses — “no bribery, no gift, no influence, no commission, no middlemen”. These are a mandatory clauses in defence contracts according to the defence procurement procedure and were part of the tender by the UPA for purchase of 126 fighter aircraft, he said.

    “Were the anti-corruption clauses deleted to escape responsibility from bribery and commission to be paid in the Rafale deal? Why was the deletion of anti-corruption clauses approved by the prime minister and the Modi government in September 2016, despite the defence ministry’s insistence upon including it in the inter-governmental agreement in July 2015,” Khera asked.

    “Is this the reason that CBI-ED refused to probe the corruption in Rafale deal since October 11, 2018, till date,” he asked.

    Khera claimed that on October 4, 2018, two former BJP Union ministers Yashwant Sinha and Arun Shourie and a senior lawyer submitted a complaint to director of the CBI citing massive corruption in the Rafale deal.

    On October 11, 2018, the government of Mauritius, through its attorney general, supplied documents to the CBI regarding alleged payment of commission connected to the Rafale deal, he said.

    But, on October 23, 2018, CBI Director Alok Verma was removed in a “midnight coup” after the CBI headquarters was raided by the Delhi Police, Khera said, alleging that this was part of a concerted conspiracy to bury the Rafale ghost through the CBI.

    “Why has the Modi government and the CBI not acted upon the evidence of commission and corruption for the last 36 months? Why has it been buried ? Why did the Modi government remove the CBI Chief in a midnight coup,” the Congress leader asked.

  • Rafale deal: CBI, ED have proof since 2018 over Dassault’s payment to middleman, claims French journal

    By PTI

    NEW DELHI: French investigative journal Mediapart has made fresh claims that alleged bogus invoices were used that enabled French aircraft maker Dassault Aviation to pay at least 7.5 million euros in secret commissions to a middleman to help it secure the Rafale deal with India.

    Mediapart had reported in July that a French judge has been appointed to lead a “highly sensitive” judicial investigation into suspected corruption and favouritism in the Rs 59,000-crore inter-governmental deal with India for the supply of 36 Rafale fighter jets.

    There was no reaction yet on the latest report from the defence ministry or Dassault Aviation.

    “Mediapart is today publishing the alleged false invoices that enabled French aircraft manufacturer Dassault Aviation to pay at least 7.5 million euros in secret commissions to a middleman to help secure the sale of 36 Rafale fighter aircraft to India,” the journal said in its new report on Sunday.

    It alleged that despite the existence of “these documents”, the Indian probe agencies decided not to pursue the matter.

    “It involves offshore companies, dubious contracts and “false” invoices. Mediapart can reveal that detectives from India’s federal police force, the Central Bureau of Investigations (CBI), and colleagues from the Enforcement Directorate (ED), which fights money laundering, have had proof since October 2018 that French aviation firm Dassault paid at least 7.5 million euros (equivalent to just under Rs 650 million) in secret commissions to middleman Sushen Gupta,” Mediapart claimed in the report.

    “This was in the context of the French firm’s long and ultimately successful attempt to secure a 7.8 billion-euro-deal in 2016 to sell 36 of its Rafale fighters to India,” it said.

    Rafale manufacturer Dassault Aviation and India’s defence ministry have previously trashed allegations of any corruption in the contract.

    India’s Supreme Court too in 2019 dismissed petitions seeking a probe into the deal saying there was no ground for it.

    In a statement published in April, reacting to Mediapart’s report on the investigation, Dassault Aviation stated that the group, “acts in strict compliance with the OECD Anti-Bribery Convention and national laws”.

    The NDA government had inked a Rs 59,000-crore deal on September 23, 2016, to procure 36 Rafale jets from Dassault Aviation after a nearly seven-year exercise to procure 126 Medium Multi-Role Combat Aircraft (MMRCA) for the Indian Air Force did not fructify during the UPA regime.

    The Congress accused the government of massive irregularities in the deal, alleging that it was procuring each aircraft at a cost of over Rs 1,670 crore as against Rs 526 crore finalised by the UPA government during the negotiations for the MMRCA.

    Prior to the Lok Sabha elections in 2019, Congress raised several questions about the deal and alleged corruption, but the government rejected all the charges.

  • India has received 26 Rafale aircraft till date, delivery of 10 more proceeding: Centre

    The multi-role Rafale jets, built by French aerospace major Dassault Aviation, are known for air superiority and precision strikes.

  • India has received 26 Rafale aircraft till date, delivery of 36 more proceeding: Union govt 

    The multi-role Rafale jets, built by French aerospace major Dassault Aviation, are known for air superiority and precision strikes.

  • Like Bofors, set up JPC for Rafale deal: Digvijaya Singh to PM Narendra Modi

    By PTI
    INDORE: Senior Congress leader Digvijaya Singh on Tuesday dared Prime Minister Narendra Modi to set up a Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC) to probe the Rafale fighter jet deal, like the one which scrutinized the Bofors deal in the 1980s.

    The Rajya Sabha member alleged large-scale corruption in the form of payment of commission in the Rafale deal.

    “France has started a probe in the Rafale case, but in India, where commission was paid, no inquiry is being conducted. If one compares the Rafale deal with the Bofors case, the then prime minister Rajiv Gandhi had, on his own, constituted a JPC,” Singh said.

    “If Modi has courage, he should constitute a JPC. We have a lot of questions and will get opportunity to raise them,” the Congress leader added.

    Nobody could prove a single charge against Rajiv Gandhi in the Bofors case, he said.

    The Bofors scandal related to alleged payment of kickbacks in a deal to purchase howitzer guns from the Swedish manufacturer Bofors AB.

    Congress leader Rahul Gandhi recently demanded a JPC probe into alleged corruption in the fighter jet deal.

    A French judge has been appointed to lead a “highly sensitive” judicial probe into suspected “corruption” and “favouritism” in the Rs 59,000 crore Rafale deal with India, French investigative website Mediapart reported last week.

    Singh, meanwhile, also hit out at the Centre over the rise in fuel prices, claiming it impacted the middle class severely at a time when the tax collection from industrialists and large corporate houses has gone down.

    Modi is someone who takes decisions in haste and thinks later, he said, citing examples such as the handling of the COVID-19 pandemic, demonetization and withdrawal of the special status of Jammu and Kashmir.

  • Government has no option but to order joint parliamentary committee probe into Rafale deal: Congress

    By PTI
    NEW DELHI: The Congress on Monday asserted that the government has no option but to order a JPC probe into the allegations of corruption in the purchase of Rafale fighter jets and questioned Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s silence even 48 hours after an investigation in France was ordered into the deal.

    Congress leader Rahul Gandhi said truth cannot be silenced while former defence minister AK Antony said the the Modi government cannot escape accountability by keeping mum and alleged that it points towards a “mal-intent to hush up” alleged corruption in the deal. “Truth can’t be silenced.Unlike ‘Modia’,” Gandhi tweeted, using the hashtag “RafaleScam”.

    Truth can’t be silenced. Unlike ‘Modia’.#RafaleScam pic.twitter.com/LPuSvyhlKQ
    — Rahul Gandhi (@RahulGandhi) July 5, 2021

    He also shared a video of a journalist of French media firm Mediapart who claimed that the then French president Francois Hollande had said that the Indian government had proposed Anil Ambani’s Reliance group as a partner of Dassault in the deal.

    Antony alleged that “prima facie corruption in the Rafale deal is now apparent”, as the French Public Prosecution Services has now appointed a judge to investigate “corruption, influence peddling and brazen favouritism” in the 36-aircraft Rafale deal.

    “The intriguing silence of the Modi Government points towards mal-intent to hush up the corruption. The refusal of the BJP Government to probe and punish the guilty is even more astonishing, pointing towards a concerted effort to bury the scam,” the former defence minister said.

    He said the series of events and documents in public records have now affirmed the stance of the Congress party about “wrongdoing and corruption” in the Rafale deal. “What is, indeed, mysterious is the fact that despite 48 hours having lapsed, the prime minister and the defence minister have decided to maintain complete silence on the ordering of corruption investigation into Rafale deal by the French Public Prosecution Services” he added.

    “The simple question is why has the government chosen to remain ‘mum’? Why have the prime minister and the defence minister not come forward to react to the shocking and sensational development of a corruption probe in the Rafale deal by the Public Prosecution Services of France? “Can Modi Government escape accountability for corruption allegations by its intriguing silence? Is it not the responsibility of the Government to come forward and accept the truth,” Antony asked.

    The senior Congress leader said this is even more important as 36 aircraft are being purchased by India under an inter-governmental agreement and one party to the agreement – the French government has proceeded to order an investigation through a judge. “The only way forward is to accept accountability and order a free and fair JPC probe into the entire set of facts, evidence and allegations of corruption in the Rafale deal,” he said.

    Antony alleged that Prime Minister Modi went to Paris on April 10, 2015 and unilaterally announced the purchase of 36 Rafale aircraft “without going through any tender process and in complete derogation of the ‘Defence Procurement Procedure’”.

    He claimed that every defence expert was shocked by this unilateral order which is India’s biggest defence deal. “It was even more surprising because there was an ongoing negotiation for the purchase of 126 Rafale aircraft in pursuance of an international tender, which envisaged 108 aircraft to be made in India by Hindustan Aeronautics Limited and 18 aircraft to be purchased in fly-away condition,” he said.

    He said this international tender for 126 aircraft also envisaged the all-important ‘transfer of technology’ to India, but till today neither the prime minister nor the BJP government has explained the reason for reducing the number of aircraft from 126 to 36 or the reason for sacrificing the transfer of technology to India.

    The BJP government has also not explained the basis or the reason for enhancing the price of the 36 aircraft or for denying the offset contract to the government’s PSU, Hindustan Aeronautics Limited, he said.

    The BJP government has also not stated the reason for the fact that when the clearance from ‘Defence Acquisition Council’ had been given and there was an ongoing tender for which negotiations were being finalised, how could the prime minister and the government unilaterally enter into another agreement, the senior Congres leader said.

    The opposition Congress has been alleging “wrongdoing” in the defence deal and had raised it as one of the main issues to target Modi during the 2019 Lok Sabha polls.

    It has demanded a Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC) probe and is now set to escalate its attack on the government by raising the issue during the Monsoon session of Parliament from July 19. The government has denied allegations of corruption in the deal.

    The BJP had on Sunday hit out at the Congress for again raising questions over the Rafale deal and sought to know why its government did not procure the fighter planes for 10 years despite a depleted squadron strength of the Indian Air Force. “Is it because the Gandhi family did not get their desired ‘commission’?” BJP spokesperson Sambit Patra had said.

  • Rafale deal: BJP hits back after Rahul Gandhi questions govt intent

    By Express News Service
    NEW DELHI: Congress leader Rahul Gandhi put out an online poll on Sunday questioning the Centre’s alleged reluctance in conducting a Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC) probe into the multi-billion-dollar Rafale jets deal.

    At 10:45 am, Rahul conducted the online poll on Twitter, asking why the “Modi government is not ready for a JPC probe”. The options given by him were “Guilt conscience”, “Need to save friends”, “JPC doesn’t want a Rajya Sabha seat”, “All of the above”.

    The alleged scam in the Rs 59,000 crore deal was one of Rahul’s main poll planks going into the 2019 General elections, in which BJP returned with an even greater, historic mandate. Leading the Congress campaign, Rahul tried to question PM’s clean image in rallies with the slogan “Chowkidar chor hai”, which apparently backfired.

    Addressing the media on Sunday, Congress spokesperson Pawan Khera said the deal was an inter-governmental one between India and France and one of the two countries had initiated a probe while the other was yet to even comment.

    “It’s been 24 hours since France has ordered a probe on matters like corruption, influence peddling, money laundering, favouritism. The whole nation, the whole world is now looking to New Delhi. Why the silence?” Khera said.

    Hitting back, BJP spokesperson Sambit Patra sought to know why the UPA government did not procure the fighter planes for 10 years despite a depleted squadron strength of the IAF, “Is it because the Gandhi family did not get their desired ‘commission’?” he asked. Patra said it does not sound well when the Congress party accuses others of jeopardising national security.  It is astounding that yet again the Congress has taken the “abuse” way,  Patra said. 

  • Is it because Gandhi family didn’t get ‘commission’: BJP’s retort to Congress questioning Rafale deal

    By PTI
    NEW DELHI: The BJP on Sunday hit out at the Congress for raising questions over the Rafale deal and sought to know why its government did not procure the fighter planes for 10 years despite a depleted squadron strength of the Indian Air Force.

    “Is it because the Gandhi family did not get their desired ‘commission’?” asked BJP spokesperson Sambit Patra.

    The Congress party has questioned the silence of the BJP government after French authorities ordered a probe into “corruption and favouritism” in the multi-billion fighter aircraft deal.

    In reply, Patra said it does not sound well when the Congress party accuses others of jeopardising national security.

    “The Congress should answer as to why for 10 years, despite a depleted squadron strength of the Indian Air Force, Congress government didn’t procure the much-needed Rafale fighter planes. Is it because the Gandhi Family did not get their desired ‘commission’?” he asked.

    It is astounding that yet again the Congress has taken the “abuse” way.

    Abusing the prime minister and talking about his appearance and beard, the BJP spokesperson said.

    “Congress followed the same strategy of abusing Modi ji during the 2019 Lok Sabha Elections we had then seen the fallout…if they still want to experiment with the dejected ‘toolkit’ they are welcome…the people of this country will give a befitting reply to Rahul Gandhi and the Congress,” Patra said.

    Congress spokesperson Pawan Khera has sought to know that in an inter-governmental defence deal, where there cannot be any middlemen or corruption when the beneficiary of any “corruption” has ordered a probe, why has a country, which has lost public money, not ordered one? He alleged that the government led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi makes a lot of noise about national security, but undermines the country’s security interests when it comes to helping its crony capitalist friends.

    Patra said that the pricing, procedures of procurement and all other aspects of the deal has been examined both by the Comptroller and Auditor General of India and the Supreme Court.

    “In India, the ‘verdict’ is out from the highest epitome of justice. Congress’ accusations sound hollow and carry no water,” Patra said, alleging that the Congress is “blatantly lying” about a tender during their regime.

    Explaining the process, Patra said there is a difference between a proposal and a deal/tender.

    “If there was a tender during the UPA regime why was the fighter jet not procured? It is clear that the Congress is trying its best to yet again do what it is best at spreading confusion and fakery so that forces inimical to India stand benefitted,” he alleged.

    The Congress has sought to know that now that the French Public Prosecution Services (PNF) has initiated a probe into the corruption allegations against the previous president of France, who was one of the parties to the deal, why is no enquiry being ordered on the role of the key functionaries of the Indian government?

    “The Indian National Congress demands that a fair Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC) be constituted immediately and every aspect of the Rafale deal probed by it. The people of India deserve to know the truth,” Khera said.