New Delhi: As the Congress-led Opposition went after the Government on its Rs 58,000 crore deal for procuring 36 Rafale jets, by describing it as the “biggest scam” of the BJP-led NDA Government, the Centre on Wednesday hit back and reiterated that it was better in many aspects than the one “notionally negotiated” by the Congress regime, which could not conclude it even in 10 years.
The Government asserted that the demand to disclose details such as the deal’s value was “unrealistic” as doing so might compromise India’s national security.
“As doubts are sought to be created about the 2016 contract for 36 aircraft, it is once again strongly reiterated that the deal secured by the government is better in terms of capability, price, equipment, delivery, maintenance, training, etc., than that notionally negotiated by the then government in a process it could not conclude in ten years,” a statement by the ministry of defence (MoD) said.
The statement further said that the earlier UPA regime had also expressed its inability to disclose the price of various defence procurements, including in its responses to Parliament questions, in keeping with confidentiality requirements.
Giving an item-wise cost and other information would reveal details about weapons systems and customisation of the jet, it said, adding that the government was bound by the confidentiality provisions of a 2008 Indo-France pact of not sharing details of the deal.
Former Union minister and senior Congress leader M. Veerappa Moily while initiating a discussion on Union Budget in Lok Sabha said that the Rafale aircraft deal inked with France was the “biggest scam” of the BJP-led NDA government and Prime Minister Narendra Modi was answerable to the people.
Congress president Rahul Gandhi accused Prime Minister Narendra Modi of protecting those behind alleged corruption in the Rafale deal and said he needs to answer the country on questions posed to him on it and on farmers and jobs instead of making allegations in Parliament.
Mr Gandhi made the accusation while reacting to Mr Modi’s speech in the Lok Sabha, which, he dubbed as a “political and campaign speech”.
“He made a political speech, a campaign speech, but did not speak on the issues before the country... The prime minister talked for one hour, but did not utter a single word about the Rafale deal...
“Questions are being asked by the country from the prime minister, but he is not answering... here (in Parliament) you have to give answers and not ask questions to the country instead,” he said outside Parliament.
