BJP hits back at Congress, says Rafale deal profitable
New Delhi, July 27 : The BJP on Friday hit back at Congress over its allegations on the Rafale fighter jet deal, saying it had been "profitable" to the country.
THe party said the Modi government negotiated the deal with France at nine per cent less cost compared to that done by the former UPA.
The BJP posted a video with headline "Facts you need to know about Rafale deal!" on its official twitter handle claiming that the "most ambitious fighter aircraft aquisition project" from France was fixed at Euro 91.75 mn/aircraft (Rs 733.66 crore, as per current exchange rate: one Euro equals to Rs 79.96).
According to the video, Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his team put their best efforts to rework the Rafale deal with France in 2016 and "it successfully finalised the deal at 9 per cent less cost" by buying 36 aircraft at Rs 733.66 crore apiece."
The video also claimed that in 2011 the price negotiated by the UPA for 126 Rafale aircraft was Euro 100.85 mn/aircraft (Rs 806.43 crore/aircraft).
Earlier, BJP spokesperson Sudhanshu Trivedi rejected the fresh allegations as "baseless" , saying the opposition party is repeating same claims in "frustration" which has already been rebutted by Union Ministers and the French government.
"The BJP never levelled allegations in defence deals. It was members of Congress government or foreign countries which first alleged corruption in cases like Bofors deal or AgustaWestland chopper purchase," Trivedi said at a press conference.
He said those levelling allegations should first hear defence experts and refrain from politicising such deals.
The BJP leader said the Congress-led governments never allowed defence production in the country so that it could strike "deals" with foreign suppliers.
"Now, they are levelling baseless allegations after the Modi government has started working towards domestic production," he said.
Earlier in the day, the Congress accused Defence Minister Nirmala Sitharaman of "lying" on Reliance Defence Limited, which it said didn't have the experience in manufacturing fighter jets, having secured an offset contract from Dassault Aviation for Rs.30,000 crore and a consequent ‘Lifecycle Cost Contract of Rs. 1 lakh crore in the Rafale deal.
Stressing that national interest was being compromised by the Prime Minister and the Defence Minister, Congress demanded that Modi must "break his silence over whether he represented the interest of private companies and industrial houses."
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SEBI must name 'big players' profiteering at expense of small traders in F&O trading: Rahul Gandhi
New Delhi, Sep 24: Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Tuesday said 90 per cent of small investors have lost Rs 1.8 lakh crore in Futures and Option (F&O) trading in three years and asked the SEBI to reveal the names of the "so called big players" profiteering at their expense.
More than 91 per cent, or 73 lakh, individual traders lost money in the F&O segment in FY24 with an average net loss of Rs 1.2 lakh per person, a study conducted by markets regulator Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) revealed on Monday.
Further, 93 per cent of over 1 crore individual F&O traders incurred average losses of about Rs 2 lakh per trader (inclusive of transaction costs) during the three years from FY22 to FY24. The aggregate losses of such traders exceeded Rs 1.8 lakh crore during the period.
Gandhi, who is the leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha, said on X, "Uncontrolled F&O trading has grown 45X in 5 years. 90% of small investors have lost ₹1.8 lakh Cr in 3 years."
"SEBI must reveal the names of the so called 'Big Players' making a killing at their expense," the former Congress chief said.
The study said in FY24 alone, individuals incurred about Rs 75,000 crore in net losses.
It found the top 3.5 per cent of loss-makers -- about 4 lakh traders -- faced an average loss of Rs 28 lakh per person over the same period, inclusive of transaction costs.
On the other hand, only 7.2 per cent of individual F&O traders made a profit over the period of three years and only 1 per cent of individual traders managed to earn profits exceeding Rs 1 lakh, after adjusting for transaction costs.
Moreover, the number of retail traders, or individual traders, has almost doubled in two years to about 96 lakh in FY24 from about 51 lakh in FY22.
Although such investors contributed about 30 per cent to the total turnover in FY24, they are a clear majority in number terms, as 99.8 per cent of total traders in the equity F&O segment are individuals.
"The availability of sophisticated trading platforms and lower transaction costs have enabled retail investors to actively trade in options and futures contracts, contributing to the surge in market liquidity," SEBI said.
The regulator said rapid growth in F&O trading activity has highlighted the need for investor education and risk management practices, as a significant proportion of retail traders continued to incur losses in the market.
Uncontrolled F&O trading has grown 45x in 5 years.
— Rahul Gandhi (@RahulGandhi) September 24, 2024
90% of small investors have lost ₹1.8 lakh Cr in 3 years.
SEBI must reveal the names of the so called “Big Players“ making a killing at their expense.
