The UPA delayed the Rafale deal by over a decade and seriously compromised national security, Union Finance Minister Arun Jaitley wrote in a blog post on Wednesday.
Mr. Jaitley also posed 15 questions to Congress president Rahul Gandhi about the deal and claimed that the “facts” that Mr. Gandhi and the Congress had put out on pricing and procedure were false. By raising these issues, the party was trying “to further delay a defence procurement so that India’s defence preparedness further suffers,” he said.
‘More specific facts’
“I have, therefore, decided to ask the following questions to the Congress party and its president,” the Finance Minister said. “Needless to say that if replies are received in the public space or even if there is an issue diversion and no reply is received, I would be constrained to come out with further specific facts which establish truth as a victim of Shri Rahul Gandhi and his party merely peddling his falsehoods.”
On the delay in the deal, Mr. Jaitley asked: “Do you agree that the delay of over one decade was only on account of the incompetence and indecisiveness of the UPA Government? Did this delay seriously compromise national security? Was this delay and eventual abatement of the purchase by the UPA based on collateral considerations as had been witnessed in earlier transactions such as the purchase of the 155 mm Bofors gun?”
The Finance Minister asked: “How is it that Shri Rahul Gandhi quoted a price of ₹700 crore per aircraft in Delhi and Karnataka in April and May this year? In Parliament, he reduced it to ₹520 crore per aircraft, in Raipur he increased it to ₹540 crore; in Jaipur he used the two figures — ₹520 crore and ₹540 crore in the same speech. In Hyderabad, he invented a new price of ₹526 crore. Truth has only one version, falsehood has many. ?” “Is he aware of the fact that… the basic aircraft price itself is 9% cheaper under the NDA than it was under the UPA,” Mr. Jaitley asked.
“Can Shri Rahul Gandhi deny that when the add-ons such as India-specific adaptations, weaponry, etc. are installed on the basic aircraft, the UPA price, which was mentioned in the 2007 L1 offer, would be at least 20% costlier than the more favourable price negotiated by the NDA? “Can Shri Rahul Gandhi and the Congress deny that the Government of India has no contract whatsoever with any private industry in relation with the Rafale aircraft supplies,” Mr. Jaitley asked in relation to the role of industrialists.
“I am asking the above questions and I hope Shri Rahul Gandhi and the Congress Party would respond immediately.”
