Why is Government Silent on Rafale Price? Asks Rahul Gandhi

Amethi: Continuing his attack on the Rafale deal, Congress President on Tuesday questioned the government’s silence on the demand for disclosing the price of the fighter jets being bought from France. “We have asked Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the Defence Minister what is the price of the aircraft. The Defence Minister says she will not let the youth of Hindustan know the price. The Defence Minister told us that there is a secret pact between India and France (not to disclose the price),” he told reporters on the second day of his visit to his constituency.

“Again they (Indian government) tell us that we cannot reveal the price of the Rafale aircraft but Macron told me there is nothing as such. If the Indian government wants to reveal the price of the Rafale aircraft, they can,” the Congress chief said. “First, the question is why did the Defence Minister lie? Then suddenly you get the price of the aircraft Rs 526 crore versus Rs 1,600 crore. Even other countries have bought Rafale aircraft but not for Rs 1,600 crore,” he said. Referring to the offset agreement between French manufacturer Dassault and an Indian private firm, Gandhi said for 70 years HAL has been making aircraft while the private firm had not made any aircraft. Making a reference to the deal signed between the two governments headed by Modi and former French President Francois Hollande, he said (French) journalists had asked Hollande as to who gave the deal to the private firm — whether it was Modi, the French government or Dassault. (IANS)