Anil Ambani Welcomes Rafale Deal Verdict by Supreme Court, Says 'Judgment Establishes Falsity of Politically Motivated Allegations'
Congress has been alleging that the Modi government chose Reliance Defence instead of a 70-year-old defence public sector company Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd (HAL) as offset partner of Dassault Aviation to favour Anil Ambani.
New Delhi, December 14: Minutes after the Supreme Court on Friday dismissed petitions seeking a probe into the Rafale fighter jet deal, Reliance Defence chairman Anil Ambani issued a statement, welcoming the apex court's verdict. Congress president Rahul Gandhi has been alleging that the Modi government chose Reliance Defence instead of a 70-year-old defence public sector company Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd (HAL) as offset partner of Dassault Aviation to favour Anil Ambani.
"I welcome the judgment of Hon'ble Supreme Court today summarily dismissing all PILs filed on the Rafale contracts and conclusively establishing the complete falsity of the wild, baseless and politically motivated allegations levelled against Reliance Group and me personally," Anil Ambani said in the statement. He added Reliance Group is committed to India's national security. Full Text of Rafale Deal Verdict by Supreme Court.
"We remain committed to making our humble contribution towards the make in India and Skill India policies of the Government in the critical area of defence including our offset partnership agreement with our valued partner, Dassault Aviation of France," the Reliance Group chairman added.
The Supreme Court on Friday junked petitions seeking court-monitored probe into the Rafale jet deal saying that there was "nothing questionable" in the decision-making process and the bench was not competent to go into the question of pricing and the choice of offset partner by Rafale manufacturer Dassault.
A bench headed by Chief Justice Ranjan Gogoi said it "sees no reason to intervene" in the defence deal as the four petitions sought a court-monitored probe into the deal for 36 Rafale fighter jets in a fly-away condition from Dassault Aviation.
While the Modi government defended the deal, the Congress alleged corruption took place in the Rafale deal as the cost of one aircraft, which was Rs 540 crore when the UPA government had signed the deal, rose to thrice its value to Rs 1,600 crore under the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)-led government at the Centre.
(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Dec 14, 2018 12:01 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).