Rafale Deal: Relief For Modi Govt As SC Dismisses All Petitions Seeking Probe
New Delhi: In a relief to the Prime Minister Narendra Modi-led BJP government over the procurement of 36 Rafale fighter jets from France’s Dassault Aviation, the Supreme Court Friday dismissed all pleas seeking a court-monitored probe into the matter. The Court said it was satisfied with the procurement process and that it found no reason to interfere in the pricing or the offset partner chosen as part of the deal.
“(There is) no occasion to doubt the process of decision making in the award of contract for the purchase of 36 Rafale jets. It is not the Court’s job to get into comparative pricing details,” a three-judge bench headed by Chief Justice of India Ranjan Gogoi said.
The apex court said, “We don’t find any material to show that it’s commercial favouritism.” “We are satisfied that there is no occasion to doubt the process. A country can not afford to be underprepared. It is not correct for the court to sit as an appellant authority and scrutinise all aspects,” a three-judge bench headed by Chief Justice of India Ranjan Gogoi said.
“There is no reason for interference in the choice of offset partner and perception of individuals can’t be the basis for roving inquiry in sensitive issue of defence procurement. We can’t compel the government to purchase 126 aircrafts and its not proper for the court to examine each aspect of this case. It isn’t a job of the court to compare pricing details,” the bench headed by CJI Gogoi said.
The top court also said, “There has been the necessity of fighter aircraft and the country cannot remain without fighter jets.” Nobody questioned procurement of Rafale jets when the deal was finalised in September 2016, it said.
The court also noted there is a need for induction of fourth and fifth generation of fighter aircrafts like Rafale in Indian Air Force.
Calling the judgment wrong, lawyer Prashant Bhushan, who is also the petitioner in the case, said, “In our opinion, the Supreme Court judgement is totally wrong, the campaign will certainly not drop and we will decide if we will file a review petition.”
Reacting to the court’s verdict, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)demanded an apology from the Congress and its president Rahul Gandhi for levying allegations against PM Modi in the deal. Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh said, “The matter was crystal clear from the beginning and we have been saying that the allegations levelled by the Congress were baseless and to gain political mileage.”
Welcoming the judgement, BJP spokesperson Shahnawaz Hussain said, “Every deal is not Bofors deal. It is the culture and tradition of Congress and its top leadership to mint money from such deals on the cost of country’s national security. Rahul Gandhi and the Congress should apologise to Prime Minister Narendra Modi for making false allegations against him and questioning his credibility.”
TMC leader Sugata Roy also said, “The Supreme Court said what it thinks was right but the political parties demand a JPC probe into rafale deal”
Reliance chairman Anil Ambani also welcomed the judgment and said it establishes falsity of politically motivated allegations against his firm. He also said his company committed to India’s national security, including implementing offset deal with Dassault.
The case pertains to the purchase of 36 Rafale fighter jets from French company Dassault Aviation. During the hearing, the four petitioners in the case had sought details on the process behind selecting Dassault Aviation for the contract and the price negotiated — they claim the current price by the NDA government is much higher than the one that was being negotiated for 126 aircraft by the previous UPA government. The government had responded that the price of the jets could not be disclosed to the public for reasons of national security and had submitted it to the apex court in a sealed envelope. The price is estimated at around Rs 59,000 crore.
Courtesy | The Indian Express
