Why purchasing just 36 Rafale planes when 126 required, asks Congress

Mathura, Sep 2 The Congress has asked the Narendra Modi government for what valid reason it inked a deal with France's Dassault Aviation to purchase only 36 aircraft when 126 fighter jets were required.

The party's national representative, Priyanka Chautrvedi, asked if there's any criticalness, why the legislature did not request that the French organization supply all the flying machine in one go.

"The first lot of the aircraft will be provided in 2019 and the rest in 2022. If there is any urgency, the whole lot should to have been supplied by 2019," she said here Saturday.

Chaturvedi asked why the government "afraid of a Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC) probe into the deal, if it's fair".

"A total of 126 aircraft were required, yet the NDA government marked an agreement for just 36 air ship. This is interesting," she said.

She charged that the administration "relinquished the nation's advantages to support a tycoon companion".

"How the cost per plane took off from Rs 526 crore to Rs 1,670 crore? The executive ought to clarify why the legislature disregarded an open division undertaking with a 70-year-long clean record and gave the agreement to a 12-day-old organization which needs encounter," she said.

The Congress leader said however the arrangement couldn't emerge amid the UPA government's residency, yet it guaranteed straightforwardness in all issues identified with it.

Association serve Arun Jaitley had before said the completely weaponised warrior planes which his legislature is purchasing are 20 for every penny less expensive than the ones offered under the past UPA administration.

In 2015, then defence minister Manohar Parrikar had said that the government had chosen to purchase just 36 Rafale warrior planes rejecting the prior plan to get 126 of the French aircraft on grounds of huge cost.