The BJP is weighed down by the Rafale and Vijay Mallya controversies as it marches towards the 2019 elections.

1. CRISIS OF CONFIDENCE

2. The BJP is weighed down by the Rafale and
Vijay Mallya controversies as it marches
towards the 2019 elections

3. As the election season draws closer, the Bhartiya Janata
Party (BJP) is firefighting the raging controversy over the
Rafale fighter jets and industrialist Vijay Mallya’s escape
from the country even as the Indian rupee hits record
lows and fuel price soar to record highs. Luckily for the
opposition parties, especially the Congress, the multi-
million dollar deal is just the ammunition they needed to
attack and corner the BJP ahead of the big battle in
2019.

4. While the Congress has been attacking the BJP over the
Rafale deal for many months, it is the recent spate of
claims and counterclaims that has made the Indo-French
deal the albatross around the neck of the BJP, with many
calling it the Bofors of the National Democratic Alliance
(NDA).

5. While the Congress was long criticising the BJP of
corruption and crony capitalism in the Rafale deal, the
big twist in the story came following former French
President Francois Hollande’s recent interview saying it
was the Indian government that suggested a particular
private firm (Reliance Defence) for the Rafale offset
contract.

6. This triggered a fresh attack by the Congress and other opposition parties
who have long accused Prime Minister Narendra Modi of favouring the Anil
Ambani-led Reliance Defence over state-owned HAL (Hindustan
Aeronautics Ltd) in the deal despite the private firm having no prior
experience in aerospace manufacturing. HAL had been in the field for 70
years.
To add to the controversy, critics point to the fact that Anil Ambani’s
Reliance Group incorporated a defence company just 12 days before Modi
announced the new Rafale deal. Ambani had accompanied Modi on his
visit to France, resulting in accusations of a breach of confidence and
cronyism.

7. The Defence Ministry, however, continued to maintain that neither the
government of India nor the French government had any say in the
commercial decision.
Hollande has been quoted in an article by the French website as claiming
that the Indian government had asked the French government to
nominate Reliance Defence as its India partner in the Rafale jet offset
deal.
"We did not have a say in this," Hollande was quoted by the website as
saying. "The Indian government proposed this service group and Dassault
negotiated with Ambani."
Congress party chief Rahul Gandhi said the Rafale deal was doctored
"behind closed doors" by Modi.

8. "The Prime Minister personally negotiated and changed the Rafale deal behind
closed doors. Thanks to François Hollande, we now know he personally
delivered a deal worth billions of dollars to a bankrupt," Gandhi said in a tweet.
"The Prime Minister has betrayed India. He has dishonoured the blood of our
soldiers," he added.
Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal said the government was putting national
security in peril by "hiding facts" of the Rafale fighter jet deal.
"By hiding crucial facts on Rafale deal, is Modi government not endangering
national security? Former French President's statement directly contradicts
what Modi government had been saying so far. Can the country be taken for a
ride any further?" Kejriwal said.

9. "Prime Minister, speak the truth. The nation wants to know the truth, whole
truth. Everyday, government of India's statements are being proven untrue.
People have started suspecting by now that something fishy has been done [in
Rafale deal], else why would the government lie day after day," the Delhi Chief
Minister added.
Joining the attack, Communist Party of India-Marxist (CPI-M) Secretary General
Sitaram Yechury, too, demanded that truth on the deal must come out.
"The Modi government has lied and misled Indians. The whole truth must come
out now. Why was the Indian government batting for one corporate house with
no experience in defence manufacture?" Yechury said.

10. The Defence Ministry said in a tweet, the French media
report was being verified.
"The report referring to former French President Mr
Hollande's statement that government of India insisted
upon a particular firm as offset partner for the Dassault
Aviation in Rafale is being verified."
"It is reiterated that neither government of India nor
French government had any say in the commercial
decision," it said.

11. The Congress also accused the Centre of 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 United Progressive Alliance
(UPA) government.
The deal to purchase 36 Rafale fighter jets from France was announced by Modi
in 2015 and signed in 2016. The UPA government was earlier negotiating a deal
to procure 126 Rafale jets, with 18 to come in flyaway condition and 108 to be
manufactured by HAL under licence.
The Narendra Modi government has repeatedly said it was Dassault that chose
its India partner for offsets and that the government had no say in the deal.
Meanwhile, the French government and Dassault Aviation have contradicted
former President Francois Hollande's claim in choosing Indian industrial
partners in the multi-million dollar Rafale jet deal.
"The French government is in no manner involved in the choice of Indian
industrial partners who have been, are being or will be selected by French
companies.

12. "In accordance with India's acquisition procedure, French companies have the
full freedom to choose their Indian partner companies that they consider to be
the most relevant, then present for the Indian government's approval the offset
projects that they wish to execute in India with these local partners so as to
fulfil their obligations in this regard," said a statement by the French
government. Dassault Aviation, the makers of the Rafale jets, in a statement,
also said: "This offsets contract is delivered in compliance with the Defence
Procurement Procedure (DPP) 2016 regulations. In this framework, and in
accordance with the policy of 'Make in India', Dassault Aviation has decided to
make a partnership with India's Reliance Group. This is Dassault Aviation's
choice."
The Paris-based company said that the partnership between the two giants led
to the creation of the "Dassault Reliance Aerospace Ltd (DRAL) joint-venture in
February 2017.
The deal to purchase 36 Rafale fighter jets from France was announced by
Prime Minister Narendra Modi in 2015 and signed in 2016.

13. Another worrying detail recently reported by investigative journalists Karl
Laske and Anton Rouget is that Ambani had produced a film for
Hollande’s partner, actress Julie Gayet. Ambani allegedly funded Gayet's
film when the deal for 36 fighter jets with Reliance was completed.
The Congress has now moved the Central Vigilance Commission (CVC)
seeking an FIR as part of its multi-pronged attack on the Rafale deal but
the BJP hit back by alleging that the previous UPA government had
cancelled the fighter jets deal with France as a company linked to
Congress President Rahul Gandhi’s brother-in-law Robert Vadra was not
accepted as the "middleman".
While the Congress gave a memorandum to Central Vigilance
Commissioner (CVC) K.V.
Chowdary seeking a probe into the "corruption" in the deal, Gandhi
launched a virulent attack on Modi saying the country's "chowkidar"
[watchman] had committed "chori" [theft]. In a tweet, he made another
veiled attack on Modi, calling him "India's Commander in Thief."
The BJP held two press conferences in the day to respond to Congress
allegations and launch a counter-tirade.

14. "The stench of corruption and cronyism in the Rafale deal is nauseating, requiring urgent intervention,"
the party said and endorsed former Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd (HAL) chief T.S. Raju's call for making
public the files relating to HAL's work-share contract with Dassault.
The Congress also targeted Modi and Defence Minister Nirmala Sitharaman saying the deal "reeks of a
huge scam".
While both the Defence Ministry and Law Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad have maintained that the Indian
government had no role in the choice of the offset partner, Finance Minister Arun Jaitley took to social
media to reiterate the assertions and pointed to Hollande's "contrasting remarks".
If the Rafale deal was not enough of a headache for the BJP, news of fugitive businessman Vijay Mallya
meeting Finance Minister Arun Jaitley soon before he fled the country was just the fuel opposition
parties needed to reignite the Mallya controversy.
The Congress is now demanding an independent probe into the episode and asked: "Who is the chief
architect, protector and benefactor in Vijay Mallya's escape?"
Surjewala reiterated his party's demand for sacking Jaitley. "Despite startling revelations about a
meeting between Mallya and Jaitley on March 1, 2016, both Modi and Jaitley have maintained
"conspiratorial silence."

15. The Congress leader said a consortium of banks had met Supreme Court senior
advocate Dushyant Dave on February 28, 2016, for advice on the Mallya case.
"Dave has gone on record that he advised the SBI management to move the
Supreme Court the next day and get Mallya's passport confiscated. The SBI
management and other banks never returned the next day for action against
Mallya or for blocking his escape," said Surjewala.
"Who in the Modi government told the SBI and other banks to not move the
Supreme Court?" he asked.
"Why did the banks wait till March 5 that year to move the Supreme Court when
Mallya had already escaped on March 2. Does it not prove a sinister conspiracy
to help Mallya," he sought to know.
"Mukul Rohatgi, the then Attorney General and a close Jaitley friend, has also
made a startling revelation that Mallya could have been possibly tipped off," he
said.

16. "After this statement, on what basis can any agency refuse to initiate
investigation into the great government-assisted escape of Mallya?" the
Congress leader added.
He questioned who was directing the banks not to lodge an FIR against Mallya
or not provide the full facts of loan defaults and diversion of funds to
investigating agencies.
"If the Prime Minister does not act, it will be proved that the watchman is not
only a partner but also guilty," Surjewala added. Congress President Rahul
Gandhi has demanded Finance Minister Arun Jaitely's resignation after accusing
him of colluding with fugitive businessman Vijay Mallya "and giving him a free
passage" to flee the country.
At the media conference, party MP P.L. Punia claimed to give an eyewitness
account of the meeting between Jaitley and Mallya in the Central Hall of
Parliament before the businessman fled the country on March 2, 2016.
"The Finance Minister talks to an absconder [Mallya] and the absconder tells the
Finance Minister that I am going to London. The Finance Minister neither told
the CBI, the ED or the police, why?

17. "He was given a free passage to leave the country by the Finance Minister,"
said Gandhi and alleged that the logistics of Mallya going out of the country
were discussed at the meeting.
"The Finance Minister has colluded with a criminal."
Punia claimed the meeting between Jaitley and Mallya lasted 15-20 minutes
and alleged that Mallya took Jaitley's permission after holding consultations
with him about his planned flight abroad.
"The meeting happened on March 1, 2016, a day after the Union budget was
presented. In the Central Hall, initially Mallya and Jaitley were standing and
were talking intently. Then they moved to the benches in the Central Hall and
were seated and talking," said Punia.
"Later, on March 3 morning, news appeared that Mallya left the country on
March 2. My first reaction was that I had seen them together in Central Hall a
day earlier," said Punia.
The MP said he had referred about the meeting in his interactions with the
media.

18. The BJP hit out by alleging that UPA government gave "sweet deals" to Mallya
and that Gandhi family "partially owned the now-defunct Kingfisher Airlines
through proxy".
The ruling party rejected the demand for Jaitley's resignation and instead
sought to turn the tables on Congress by asking Rahul Gandhi to quit in view of
his involvement in the National Herald case. The Congress, which has been
losing ground in the country after successive defeats in Assembly elections, is
hoping to halt BJP’s advance with the Rafale deal and Mallya case. Even
though the BJP government has faced criticism over intolerance against
minorities, lynching incidents and rising unemployment, Prime Minister
Narendra Modi and his Cabinet ministers have kept their clean image intact.

19. However, if any dirt from the opposition’s claims of Modi or Jaitley’s
involvement in these cases sticks, the image of the BJP will take a serious hit
ahead of the 2019 elections. In the maze of claims and counter-claims from
all sides, the only way to clear the air will be if the government allows greater
transparency in the Rafale deal.
The government must engage with opposition leaders and disclose all
information related to the Rafale deal that does not jeopardise national
security. If the political slugfest over Rafale continues, its biggest victim will
be the defence sector, but the BJP may be its second.

20. THANK YOU
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