Rahul Gandhi, the Congress leader, today urged his colleagues not to give up or be frightened of confronting the “corrupt” federal government since truth was with them at all times. His comments come a day after Mediapart, a French investigative publication, published further allegations that false invoices were used to enable Dassault Aviation to pay at least 7.5 million euros in hidden commissions to a middleman to help them obtain the Rafale contract with India. The defence ministry and Dassault Aviation have yet to respond to the new report.
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Dassault Aviation paid the payments to the Mauritius middleman between 2007 and 2012, according to Mediapart’s research. A French judge was assigned to conduct a “very sensitive” judicial probe into possible corruption and favouritism in the 59,000-crore inter-governmental contract with India for the sale of 36 Rafale fighter planes, according to Mediapart.
After a nearly seven-year effort to obtain 126 Medium Multi-Role Combat Aircraft (MMRCA) for the Indian Air Force failed during the UPA administration, the NDA government sealed a deal with Dassault Aviation on September 23, 2016, to purchase 36 Rafale fighters.
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The Congress has accused the administration of serious irregularities in the transaction, stating that each aircraft was being procured at a cost of over 1,670 crore, as opposed to the 526 crore agreed upon by the UPA government during the MMRCA discussions.
