74 Indian Negotiating Team meetings took place before inking Rafale deal, Centre tells SC
New Delhi, Nov 12: The Centre told the Supreme Court on Monday that as many as 74 meetings of the Indian Negotiating Team (INT) took place, including 26 with the French side, from May 2015 to April 2016 on the Rafale deal.
INT was constituted to negotiate the terms and conditions of the procurement of 36 Rafale aircraft.
The INT was headed by the Deputy Chief of Air Staff (DCAS) of IAF and comprised of the Joint Secretary & Acquisition Manager (Air); Joint Secretary (Defence Offset Management Wing); Joint Secretary & Additional Financial Advisor; Finance Manager (Air); Advisor (Cost) and Assistant Chief of Air Staff (Plans) as members from Indian Government side.
The French side was headed by the Director General of Armament (DGA), Ministry of Defense, Government of France, it said.
"Negotiations between INT and the French side started in May 2015 and continued up to April 2016. A total of 74 meetings, which included 48 internal INT meetings and 26 external INT meetings with French side were held during the negotiations.
"As mandated by the Defence Acquisition Council, the INT undertook a collegiate process involving due deliberations and diligence at various levels during the negotiations. Aspects pertaining to the responsibility and obligations of French Government, pricing, delivery schedule, maintenance terms, offsets, IGA terms, etc. were discussed and negotiated during these meetings," the Centre told the top court.
India signed an agreement with France for the purchase of 36 Rafale fighter aircraft in a fly-away condition as part of the upgrading process of the Indian Air Force equipment. The estimated cost of the deal is Rs 58,000 crore.
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UP: Woman's body found stuffed in suitcase at home, family claims suicide
Shahjahanpur (UP), May 18 (PTI): Police found a woman's body stuffed inside a large suitcase at her residence here on Sunday after her family claimed that she had committed suicide, officials said.
The 32-year-old woman's husband claimed that she died by hanging herself with a scarf, and that he removed the body and placed it inside the suitcase fearing action by police, they said.
Other family members, including the couple's children, corroborated the husband's claims.
Superintendent of Police Rajesh Dwivedi told PTI that the body of Savita, wife of Ashok Kumar, was found inside a suitcase at her house in Tilhar town.
According to Dwivedi, the woman’s brother-in-law informed police that she had allegedly died by suicide.
However, when a police team reached the spot, they found her body concealed inside a suitcase.
Preliminary examination showed marks around her neck, they said, adding that the body had not yet decomposed, the SP said.
During questioning, Savita’s husband claimed that she committed suicide by hanging herself with her scarf. He also claimed fearing action against him, he removed the body and placed it inside the suitcase, police said.
Dwivedi added that this version of events was corroborated by the couple’s two children. However, the act of concealing the body in a suitcase raised suspicions, he said.
The body has been sent for post-mortem, and an investigation is underway. Legal action will be taken against anyone found guilty, the SP added.
