Rahul Gandhi spreading falsehood about Rafale deal: Arun Jaitley

In a Facebook post titled '15 Questions that Expose Congress Party’s Falsehood on Rafale', Jaitley wrote: "Can Shri Rahul Gandhi deny that when the add-ons such as India-specific adaptations, weaponry, etc. are installed on the basic aircraft, the UPA price, which was mentioned in the 2007 L1 offer, would be at least 20% costlier than the more favourable price negotiated by the NDA?"

Rahul Gandhi has demanded a Joint Parliamentary Committee probe into the deal and attacked Jaitley with a Facebook post. 

Jaitley said on 10th April, 2015, the Government of India and the French Government issued a joint statement where India decided to procure 36 Rafale aircraft from the French Government on terms better than the ones conveyed by Dassault in the L1 bid of 2007.

The same was approved by the DAC on 13th May, 2015 and finally the agreement, after a detailed procedure, was signed on 23rd September, 2016.

Jaitley accused the Congress party of spreading "a false campaign based on untruth" which resulted in "casting a cloud on the Inter-Governmental agreement."

He said the campaign falsely claimed that the NDA Government paid higher price than what the UPA would have paid if the deal would have completed on the basis of the 2007 offer of Dassault.

Jaitley said, "How is it that Shri Rahul Gandhi quoted a price of Rs.700 crores per aircraft in Delhi and Karnataka in April and May this year? In Parliament, he reduced it to Rs.520 crore per aircraft, in Raipur he increased it to Rs.540 crores; in Jaipur he used the two figures – Rs.520 crores and Rs.540 crores in the same speech. In Hyderabad, he invented a new price of Rs.526 crores."

He alleged: "Truth has only one version, falsehood has many. Are these allegations being made without any familiarity with the facts of the Rafale purchase?"

Jaitley asked  if Gandhi or the Congress Party was aware of price comparison?

"Is Mr. Gandhi aware of the aircraft price, which was quoted in 2007 in the L1 bid? Is he aware that there was an escalation clause, which by 2015 when the NDA struck the price deal, would have further escalated the price? Would not the escalation clause have continued to escalate the price till each of the aircraft was supplied? Have the significant exchange rate variations between Rupee and Euro during the same period been considered?" he wrote.

Asked Jaitley, "Is he aware of the fact that if the basic aircraft price on which UPA was to purchase the aircraft along with the escalation clause is compared at the price with the better terms on which the NDA Government signed the deal. The basic aircraft price itself is 9% cheaper under the NDA than it was under the UPA?"

"I am asking the above questions and I hope Shri Rahul Gandhi and the Congress Party would respond immediately," he said.

Rahul Gandhi has alleged scam in the deal of the NDA government with France.

Earlier, Reliance Group Chairman Anil Ambani has written to Congress President Rahul Gandhi over allegation regarding the Rafale fighter jet deal and said his party has been 'misinformed, misdirected and misled by malicious vested interests and corporate rivals.'

In a press conference on Wednesday, Anil said, "Have personally written to Rahul Gandhi that INC India has been mislead by vested interest & corporate rivals on Rafale Deal."

He said all Rafale allegations are "baseless and truth alone will triumph."