Rafale fighter aircraft
PTI Photo
The Rafale jet fighter deal continues to backfire. The latest in the saga is the accusation that the 2016 deal between India and France also involved the payment of 1.1 million Euros by aviation major Dassault to an Indian middleman. Any such payment would be a violation of the mandatory Defence Procurement Procedure laid down by the Union Ministry of Defence.
The French publication "Mediapart" has sourced its claim in an investigation undertaken by the country's anti-corruption agency, the AFA, which made the initial findings during an audit of Dassault.
What raised eyebrows during the audit was a payment of 1.1 million Euros which the company said was used to pay for the manufacture of 50 large replica models of Rafale jets. What is befuddling is that there is no proof that these models were made, Mediapart claims. Also, there is a mystifying question: Why had Dassault ordered an Indian company to make models of its own aircraft at 20,000 Euros a plane? Why was this expenditure entered in the accounts as 'a gift to client'? And were these models, each one of which was supposed to be the size of a small car, really ever made?"