India News
Rafale deal: Supreme Court dismisses petitions seeking probe
[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]The Supreme Court today (Friday, Dec 14) threw out all petitions seeking a probe into alleged irregularities in the Rafale aircraft deal between the Indian government and France’s Dassault Aviation.
The deal relates to the purchase of 36 fighter aircraft for an estimated Rs 580 billion.
“There is no occasion to doubt the decision-making process in Rafale deal,” the Court said. Further, the court said the country needs fighter aircraft and that dealing with the pricing details of Rafale fighter jets was not its job.
The court said there won’t be any probe into the pricing or the decision-making process.
Noting that there was a need for induction of fourth- and fifth-generation fighter aircraft like Rafale in the Indian Air Force fleet, the court questioned why nobody protested the procurement of the jets when the deal was finalised in September 2016.
Practically giving a clean chit to the Narendra Modi government in the Rafale deal, the court said: “We find no reasons to interfere in procurement process for 36 Rafale fighter jets from France.”
The court also said that it could not “compel the government to procure 126 or 36 fighter jets” and that it totally depended on the government’s decision.
The Supreme Court bench headed by Chief Justice Ranjan Gogoi and comprising Justices Sanjay Kishan Kaul and KM Joseph said, “Our country can’t afford to be unprepared in matters of fighter aircrafts… We can’t go into the into wisdom of purchasing 36 aircrafts in place of over 126 aircrafts under the last deal.”
“We find no reason to intervene in the defence deal”, the CJI said while dismissing the petitions.
On the issue of the offset partner, the Supreme Court said there was no substantial evidence of commercial favouritism done to any private entity.
The apex court bench said, “We do not find any substantial material on record to show that this is a case of commercial favouritism to any party by the Indian Govt as the option to choose the IOP (Indian Offset Partner) does not vest with the Indian Government.”
The court, in its 29-page judgment, said: “Perception of individuals cannot be the basis of a fishing and roving enquiry by this Court, especially in such matters.”
The unanimous verdict said the court had also “closely” examined the price details including that of basic aircraft along with escalation costs. It said the government had claimed there was a commercial advantage in the deal for 36 jets and some better terms in deal qua weapons package and maintenance.
The bench added: “It is certainly not the job of this court to carry out a comparison of the pricing details in matters like the present”. The court said it was not saying anything more on the question of pricing as the details had to be kept confidential.
The bench also said, “It will not be correct for the court to sit as an appellate authority to scrutinise each aspect of the process of acquisition.”
On offsets, the court said it was “neither appropriate nor within the experience” of the court “to step into an arena of what is technically feasible”.
At the last hearing, the SC had even summoned senior Indian Air Force officials for the hearing that went on for nearly six hours. The government had submitted details of how it decided to buy 36 fighter jets from French defence manufacturer Dassault at Rs. 59,000 crore, to the top court and petitioners who have asked for an investigation into the deal. The pricing details, which the centre said were classified, were also submitted in a sealed cover to the court.
During the hearing, the government through its top law officer Attorney General KK Venugopal even questioned the court’s competence to judicially review the aircraft deal and said it was for experts to deal with it.
After the bench asked for assistance, senior IAF officials were brought in to answer questions. They told the court that Sukhoi 30s were the latest to be inducted which is a third generation aircraft and added that they do not have fourth or fifth generation aircraft in its fleet. The top court asked if there has been no induction of aircraft since 1985, the officers said “no” At that point, the AG told the court that if “Rafale had been during the Kargil war, we could have avoided huge casualties as the fighter jet is capable of hitting targets from 60 km.
The opposition Congress has been accusing massive irregularities in the deal, alleging that the government was procuring each aircraft at a cost of over Rs 1,670 crore as against Rs 526 crore finalised by the UPA government.
The main contention of the petitioners was that Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced the deal in April 2015, without following the Defence Procurement Procedure. It was argued that the negotiations for the deal started after the PM announced the deal and approval of the Cabinet Committee was obtained almost a year after the announcement. The prices of aircraft were highly inflated in the new deal, and offset guidelines were manipulated to accommodate Anil Ambani firm Reliance Defence, which had no experience in the sector.
Four petitions challenging the deal were filed in the apex court – two by lawyers M L Sharma and Vineet Dhanda, one by Aam Aadmi Party leader Sanjay Singh and the fourth by former union ministers Yashwant Sinha, Arun Shourie and advocate Prashant Bhushan.
The court had reserved its verdict in the matter on November 14 after hearing extensive arguments.
Reliance Group Chairman Anil Ambani on Friday welcomed the Supreme Court order on the multi-billion dollar Rafale jet deal, saying it established the falsity of politically motivated allegations against his firm.
“I welcome the judgment of the Hon’ble Supreme Court today summarily dismissing all PILs filed on the Rafale contracts, and conclusively establishing the complete falsity of the wild, baseless and politically motivated allegations levelled against Reliance Group and me personally,” Ambani said in a statement.
An elated BJP launched an attack on the Congress, especially Rahul Gandhi, for making “false allegations” against PM Narendra Modi.
BJP President Amit Shah tweeted: “Truth always triumphs! Court’s judgment on the Rafale deal exposes the campaign of misinformation spearheaded by Congress President for political gains. The court didn’t find anything wrong with the process nor did it find any commercial favouritism in the deal.”
He also questioned the “motive” behind the allegations: “… SC held that govt had no role in selecting offset partners & found no merit in the demand for a probe based on mere perception of individuals. It therefore raises obvious questions on the motive of those working to discredit the deal, which is important for India.”[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row]
2024 Lok Sabha Elections
Election Commission advises Bengal Governor to not visit Cooch Behar on voting day
The Election Commission advised the Bengal Governor to call off his proposed visit to Cooch Behar on April 19.
West Bengal governor CV Ananda Bose has been warned by the Election Commission of India (ECI) not to visit Cooch Behar on April 18 and 19, since the first phase of the Lok Sabha polls will begin with a silence period on Wednesday evening.
According to those familiar with the situation in the EC, the poll body informed the governor’s office that no local program could be planned for the governor on April 19 due to the Model Code of Conduct and the election day.
The poll body added that if they had to provide local security cover for this unexpected proposed visit without a imminently known requirement, the tour would be a diversion because the district administration and police force will be completely occupied with election management on April 18 and 19.
As a result, under Section 126 of the Representation of People Act, campaigning is prohibited in Cooch Behar starting at 6 p.m. on Wednesday.
In order to ensure a free and fair election process, the poll board has asked all district election officers and district police chiefs to make sure that all prominent individuals, campaigners, and political workers who are not local voters leave the polling area once the silence period begins.
The seven phases of the 2024 Lok Sabha elections will take place between April to June. Polls will be conducted in seven phases: the first on April 19 and the seventh on June 1. On June 4, the results will be announced.
India News
Lamborghini Gallardo worth nearly Rs 1 crore set on fire over business dispute
A video circulating on social media shows the luxury car Lamborghini Gallardo being burned and reduced to ashes. The police officials said a complaint has been registered by Neeraj, a car reseller who had bought the luxury car from its original owner.
A person who deals in the sale and purchase of old luxury cars and a few others has allegedly burnt an old but expensive model of Lamborghini Gallardo on a road in Hyderabad over a dispute with its owner on Monday. The police said the owner of the Lamborghini Gallardo, Neeraj wanted to sell off the vehicle, estimated to be worth up to Rs 1 crore, and had informed some of his friends to look for a buyer.
The police added that the main accused Ahmed had called a friend of Neeraj and asked him to bring the car. The said friend of Neeraj was known to the Ahmed. When the luxury car was brought to Mamidipalli Road which is situated on the city outskirts Ahmed along with a few others, burnt the luxury car using petrol and claimed that Neeraj owed him money.
A video circulating on social media shows the luxury car Lamborghini Gallardo being burned and reduced to ashes. The police officials said a complaint has been registered by Neeraj, a car reseller who had bought the luxury car from its original owner. By the time fire department vehicles arrived at the scene it was too late as the luxury car was engulfed in flames and badly damaged. A video of the burning Lamborghini Gallardo has been circulating on social media.
The incident is a proof to the lengths to which disputes can rise. An expert spoke about the car that got burnt and said it was the Gallardo Spyder. He pointed out that it is a substantially older gen model which can only be found in the resale market. The expert further added the car has a powerful 5-litre NA V10 engine that made 513 horse power and 510 Nm of peak torque.
2024 Lok Sabha Elections
2024 Lok Sabha elections: TMC releases manifesto, Mamata Banerjee vows to scrap CAA, stop NRC
The Trinamool Congress has today released its manifesto for the Lok Sabha elections
West Bengal CM Mamta Banarjee-led Trinamool Congress (TMC) today released its manifesto for the upcoming Lok Sabha elections. In its manifesto, the TMC pledged to repeal the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA), stop the development of a National Register of citizens and the Uniform Civil Code (UCC), and stop its implementation nationwide.
The manifesto was unveiled by Trinamool MP Derek O’Brien, West Bengal Minister Chandrima Bhattacharya, and Amit Mitra, who is the Special Advisor to the Chief Minister. However, West Bengal CM Mamata Banerjee was not present at the event.
As Derek O’Brien unveiled the manifesto, he said, this is what they will do when the TMC, as part of INDIA bloc, forms government.
The Citizenship Amendment Act has long been opposed by the Trinamool Congress. Five years after it was approved by Parliament, the central government finally put the CAA into effect last month.
The party led by Mamata Banerjee has also expressed resistance to the National Register of Citizens proposal, claiming that West Bengal will never adopt it.
The manifesto titled Didi’s 10 sapaths, alludes to 10 oaths made by Mamata Banerjee, popularly known as Didi.
The Mamata Banerjee-led party additionally pledges to raise the daily allowance under the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act to Rs 400 per day in addition to the UCC and CAA. Everyone has also been offered pucca houses by the party.
A monthly pension of Rs 1,000 for people over 60, free home delivery of 5 kg of ration for every ration card user, 10 free LPG cylinders annually for families below the poverty line, and universal healthcare coverage worth Rs 10 lakh are among the other significant commitments made.
Additionally, the Trinamool Congress has pledged to establish a price stabilization fund in order to control the cost of gasoline and LPG.
The party has assured the youth that every student will receive a monthly stipend up until the age of 25. A student credit card of Rs. 10 lakh will be awarded to those who choose to continue their education.
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