The defence ministry on Friday reiterated its contention that the Rs 59,000-crore Rafale jet fighter deal signed in 2016 was better than the one that had been pursued in 2007 in terms of price, delivery and other terms, as the Congress again demanded a Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC) to probe the contract.

The Congress based its demand on a report in The Hindu newspaper that claimed the decision by the Narendra Modi government to buy the 36 jets caused the price of each plane to shoot up by 41%.

The National Democratic Alliance (NDA) government’s acceptance of the cost of €1.3 billion claimed for the “design and development” of 13 India-Specific Enhancements (ISE), and the distribution of this “non-recurring cost” over 36 instead of 126 bare-bones aircraft was the major reason for the price hike, the report said.

A defence ministry spokesperson said the article was factually inaccurate and all the issues it raised had been answered in detail by the government and most recently by defence minister Nirmala Sitharaman in Parliament. “The pricing details which are of confidential nature and covered by the Indo-French security agreement of 2008 were shared with the Supreme Court in a sealed cover,” the spokesperson said.

The NDA government’s decision to enter a government-to-government deal with France to buy 36 Rafale warplanes made by Dassault Aviation in fly-away condition was announced in April 2015 replacing the previous United Progressive Alliance (UPA) regime’s decision to buy 126 Rafale aircraft, 108 of which were to be made in India by state-owned Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd. The deal has become controversial with the Opposition, led by the Congress, claiming that the price at which India is buying Rafale aircraft now is Rs 1,670 crore for each, three times the ₹526 crore, the initial bid by the company. The NDA has not disclosed details of the price, but the UPA deal, struck in 2012, was not a viable one, former defence minister Manohar Parrikar has previously said

The defence ministry spokesperson noted that the apex court had gone through the details of the procurement and not found anything adverse in the deal. He added the Comptroller and Auditor General of India (CAG), the government auditor, had been given access to all the files related to the Rafale deal and “it is best to await the report of an authoritative agency like the CAG”.

In a unanimous decision by a three-judge bench, the SC said in December that there was no reason to doubt the process of acquiring the fighter planes and dismissed petitions seeking a court-monitored probe of the purchase.

The spokesperson said ISE were part of the air force’s requirements to achieve tactical superiority over adversaries adding that The Hindu report had failed to include the in-built escalation factor for ISE that would have worked between 2007 and 2015.

Firing a fresh salvo at the government, Congress leader P Chidambaram said at a press conference, “It seems to me that Dassault is laughing all the way to the bank...The government has purchased two squadrons that will cost about €25 million more per aircraft. At the 2016 exchange rate, €25 million is equal to ₹186 crore! India will pay Rs 186 crore more per aircraft!”

Citing the news report, he said, “The Hindu’s story raises many other serious issues about the process of decision-making in the NDA government. The man who got away was Mr Manohar Parrikar (defence minister at the time, and current Goa chief minister) who passed the buck to the Cabinet Committee on Security! Clever man! We will not comment on the process... it is necessary to compliment the three officers of the Indian negotiating team who stood up to pressure and forced a vote of 4-3 on every issue,” Chidambaram added, reiterating the Congress’s demand for a JPC to probe the contract .

The report said the newspaper had reviewed official documentation which revealed that three senior defence ministry officials in the seven-member Indian negotiating team objected to the high cost.

The defence ministry addressed the element of dissent in its 11-point rejoinder.

“The issue of dissent within the Indian Negotiated Team has also been answered by the Raksha Mantri in the Parliament. In the highest traditions of the Civil Service, all views are aired and recorded and a collegiate decision taken after considering such opinions,” the spokesperson said.

On EADS offering a 20% discount on the Eurofighter jet that lost to Rafale, the ministry said, “Even the UPA Government had rightly rejected the EADS offer of 20% discount in 2012 after opening of bids as violative of procedure…It is best to avoid the pitfalls of a corporate battle which has been going on since 2012 which has adversely affected the capabilities of the IAF.”

“When the Supreme Court has spoken, the defence minister spoke for an hour and a half... the CAG has all the files, they [the Congress] are repeatedly making malicious attempts to play politics. Congress has been exposed,” Union minister Smriti Irani said.

Taking a dig at the National Democratic Alliance government’s last interim budget Congress leader P Chidambaram Friday said that the government would not be able to revive the state of the Indian economy.

“Nothing that they do in the next 60 days will alter the status of the economy which is quite perilous. Net direct tax collection is also falling short of the budget estimates...”

(With inputs from Anisha Dutta)

First Published: Jan 18, 2019 23:25 IST