Vol. 10, Issue : 10
October 2018
Rafale Deal : Loot of the Exchequer
The Rafale deal once again exposed the
corruption at high places and the loot of public
exchequer by the Indian big bourgeoisie. Not only
that, it revealed the dependence of Indian military
on few imperialist countries for its needs right from
the rifles to war planes.
In 2007 the Indian Air Force claimed that it has
to raise 42 squadrons with 126 fighter jets. In 2012,
the then UPA government selected the French
company Dassault’s aircraft, Rafale and signed a
memorandum of understanding for supply of 108
war planes with provision for co-production in India
with HAL as partner. 18 more aircrafts would be
brought in fly away condition.
When Prime Minister Modi visited Paris in 2015,
this MoU was abandoned and a new contract was
signed with Dassault for 36 Rafale aircraft in fly
away condition at the cost of Rs. 21,000 crore. Now
HAL was replaced with Anil Ambani’s Reliance
Defence Ltd., with 50 per cent off set clause.
The former French President Francois Hollande,
who has signed the MoU in 2015, had categorically
stated that the Indian partner in Rafale deal was
proposed by the Indian government and said “we
did not have a choice in the matter”.
The Indian Defence Minister claimed that the
selection of Indian partner was made by Dassault
and government of India had no knowledge of it.
But the Indian Finance Minister came with the
clarification that negotiations for co-production had
not progressed and lack of infrastructural facilities
at HAL was the reason for the change in the
agreement.
The Public sector HAL is assembling MiGs,
Sukhoi20 fighter planes under license from Russia
and Head of the HAL openly said on record that it
has all the required facilities. If lack of infrastructure
was the real cause to abandon MoU, how can RDL,
which was registered, Just a week before the Modi’s
trip to Paris and has no experience in defence
production, be pushed into the deal?
The price of the Rafale fighter in the new contract
is twice that of what was committed in the earlier
agreement. Modi’s government is consistently
refused to disclose the price details to the
Parliament. Of late, news reports started to appear
as to how the extra money was transferred on quid
pro quo basis. The Chowkidaar selected Bhagidaar
to loot the exchequer.
This episode raises many questions. The IAF
asked for 126 fighter jets. After a decade it is yet to
receive 36 of them. How many more decades it
has to wait to raise 42 squadrons and how well it
be able to defend from supposed enemy’s attack
with depleted force? What about the remaining 90
aircrafts? Would they be procured from the US
imperialism? With recent military agreement with
US, India could not buy military hardware from
Russia as US imposed sanctions on it.
This should be seen as a part of the NDA’s drive
to privatise defence production. Under the much
publicized “Make in India” programme, the GOI
allowed foreign companies into defence production.
Most of the projects that came up and/or supposed
Organ of the Central Committee of CPI(ML)