Dassault Papers Show Reliance Entry Mandatory For Rafale Deal: Report
NEW DELHI/PARIS: An internal document of Dassault Aviation, the makers of the Rafale fighters that India is buying from France, has added more fuel to the controversy that is raging in India over the deal for the 36 jets.
French investigative journal Mediapart have reported that they have accessed a document that says Dassault picking Anil Ambani's Reliance Defence as the offset partner in India was mandatory for the Rafale deal.
The article uses the French word 'contrepartie' to describe Reliance being made the offset partner, which when translated to English, means "counterpart".
Last month, the French aerospace major had said the decision to partner with Reliance Defence for the Rafale deal was its own, after former French President Francois Hollande had claimed, in an interview to Mediapart, that the Indian government proposed Reliance Defence as the partner in the Rs. 58,000 crore Rafale deal and France did not have a choice.
Political sparring over the Rafale deal had escalated sharply after Mr Hollande's comment. The opposition has accused the government of going for a not-so-favourable contract to benefit Anil Ambani. Both the government and the industrialist have denied the charge.
The previous Congress-led UPA government had negotiated with Dassault for 126 Rafale jets under which 18 jets were to be supplied in a fly-away condition and 108 were to be manufactured in India along with state-run Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL). However, the UPA could not seal the deal.
In the deal negotiated by the new government, Anil Ambani's firm became Dassault's offset partner with no experience in the field. As part of the offset clause, Dassault has to ensure that business worth at least half the money - Rs.30,000 - is generated in India.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi had announced the procurement of a batch of 36 Rafale jets after holding talks with the then French President Hollande on April 10, 2015 in Paris.
Courtesy: www.ndtv.com
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Jharkhand: 6 arrested for kidnapping Bengal businessman, associate
Khunti (PTI): Six persons have been arrested for allegedly abducting a West Bengal-based businessman and his associate in Jharkhand's Khunti district and demanding a ransom of Rs 10 lakh, police said on Sunday.
The incident occurred on Friday in Tilmi area under the jurisdiction of Jariyagarh police station. Upon receiving information, police rescued both victims, they said.
Torpa Sub-divisional Police Officer Christopher Kerketta said, "We have rescued both the victims and arrested six people for their alleged involvement in the crime."
The businessman, identified as Haru Mukherjee (65), had come to the house of his associate, Vijay Oraon (40), to recruit labourers for work at a brick kiln.
The accused hail from different parts of Khunti, and police also seized a four-wheeler, three motorcycles, and five mobile phones from their possession, the officer said, adding an FIR has also been registered and further investigation is underway.
