Rafale deal: Congress revisits CAG, hands over stash of documents

Expressing concern over selective leaks to the media suggesting that the Comptroller and Auditor General of India (CAG) may give a clean-chit to the Modi government in Rafale scam, the Congress party revisited the CAG on Thursday, October 4 and handed over a memorandum, demanding forensic audit of the evidence submitted by it. Congress had earlier approached the CAG on September 19, demanding a probe into the Rafale deal, asking why public sector undertaking Hindustan Aeronautics Limited was passed over for the offset contract worth over ₹30,000 crore related, to make way for a private entity.

A delegation of senior Congress leaders comprising Ahmed Patel, Anand Sharma, Jairam Ramesh, Randeep Singh Surjewala, RPN Singh and Vivek Tankha met CAG Thursday afternoon, and emphasised that selective leaks are “putting a lid over the entire saga of corruption and malfeasance.”

“Does the statement and news plants by Government sources not tantamount to influencing the functioning of a Constitutional body like CAG and obstructing and interfering with its fair and independent authority?” questioned Congress.

Pressing for a probe by a Joint Parliamentary Committee, Congress said that the “conspiracy and corruption” in the Rafale fighter jet deal can only be uncovered through a JPC.

“It is expected that the CAG which has a Constitutional mandate and authority to scrutinise every document, in this case including original tender, understanding reached between Dassault and HAL and the arbitrary decision of the Prime Minister without any mandate from Cabinet Committee on Security (CCS) will undertake a forensic audit…We therefore request the CAG to bring all facts on record to enable the Parliament to fix accountability for the Rafale Scam,” reads the memorandum handed over by the Congress.

Congress hands over new revelations in Rafale deal to CAG

Saying "subsequent, documents and revelations made at the highest level in India and France have exposed a deep rooted sinister conspiracy and a clear cut case of loss to public exchequer,” the Congress submitted the following documents among a batch of annexures along with its memorandum:

• Interview given to French news website ‘Mediapart.fr’ on September 21, 2018 by former French President Francois Hollande (who signed the 36 jet Rafale deal), in which Hollande claimed that in the new deal to purchase 36 aircrafts, Indian Government proposed Anil Ambani’s Reliance Defence Limited for the ‘Offset Contract’ and the French Government didn’t have a choice but to accept it.
• An NDTV article dated September 22, 2018 saying that Hollande’s office reasserted the veracity of his claim
• An Indian Express article dated September 24, 2018 noting that current French Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs, Jean-Baptiste Lemoyne did not contradict the claims made by Hollande
• An Aviation International News article dated March 13, 2014 announcing that “Dassault Aviation has reached a firm agreement with India’s Hindustan Aeronautics (HAL) for workshare for the 126 Rafale fighters”
• A Dassault Aviation annual reporting from 2013, which says “This involves coming to agreements with local companies, and in particular with our main partner, Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL), on the work to be done in India"
• A video and accompanying transcript of Dassault Aviation’s CEO Eric Trappier’s Statement of March 25, 2015, in which Trappier is heard saying You can imagine my satisfaction to hear; on one hand from IAF Chief that he wants a combat-proven aircraft which could be the Rafale and we would have signed which should be the next logical step; and on the other hand from the HAL chairman, that we are in agreement for the responsibilities sharing
• A Hindustan Times article quoting former HAL Chief T Suvarna Raju, who retired in September 2018, unequivocally stating that Dassault and HAL had signed the mutual Workshare Agreement, and that HAL was willing and ready to guarantee the Rafale aircrafts and challenging the Government to make the files of ‘Workshare Agreement’ public
• An article dating to January 28, 2016 in which HAL was bestowed with Defence Minister’s awards for ‘excellence in performance, innovation and indigenisation’
• An Indian Express article dated September 27, 2018 noting that the ‘Rafale file and papers’ contained a ‘Dissent Note’ from the then Joint Secretary (Air), Rajeev Verma, who was the Joint Secretary (Acquisition), objecting to the arbitrary and extraordinarily high price of the 36 Rafale aircrafts being purchased by Modi Government

The Congress claimed that the facts submitted by it "reflect a clear-cut case of loss to public exchequer”, "rampant corruption”, a “concerted conspiracy of by-passing PSU, HAL” and "undue benefit to crony friends by the highest echelons of power in the Modi Government” in the purchase of 36 Rafale jets from Dassault Aviation.