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Supreme Court rejected the Public Interest Litigation pleas for Rafale deal probe.

What is the Rafale deal?

• In September 2016, India and France signed a €7.87 billion Intergovernmental Agreement (IGA) for 36 Rafale multi-role fighter jets in fly-away condition.
•  Among other things, the deal also has a 50% offset clause to be executed by Dassault Aviation and its partners in partnership with Indian companies.
• The basic cost of the aircraft is about Rs.680 crore.
• There are also India-specific aircraft modifications.

What is the political controversy?

• The Congress claims that this deal is very expensive and without any technology transfer.
• The party implied that it would benefit the Anil Ambani group that was selected by Dassault to execute part of the offset contract.
• Former French President Mr. Hollande was reported to have said the French government had no option in the choice of an Indian Offset Partner (IOP).
• The Defence Minister has asserted that no procedure has been violated.
• It is a government-to-government deal approved by the Cabinet Committee on Security.
• The offset deal was one between two companies and the government had no role in it.
• In turn, the Congress has asked the government for the cost break-up in comparison with the earlier deal.
• The Minister has refused to share “classified information”, citing the 2008 France-India security agreement.
• In 2008, under the UPA government, India and France signed a general security agreement concerning “the protection of classified information and material in the field of defense.”

What were the observations made by the Supreme Court in this case?

• The Bench led by Justice Rajan Gogoi said there was no occasion to doubt the decision-making process in the multi-billion dollar deal.
• The Supreme Court refused to embark on a “fishing enquiry” into the deal to procure 36 Rafale fighter jets merely on the basis of PIL petitions spurred by a media interview of former French President Francois Hollande and reports of favoritism.
• The Bench said the court lacked the technical expertise to examine issues such as pricing and the choice of offset partners.
• Justice Gogoi cited national security concerns to say it could not step into issues such as defence contracts and procurements.
• The apex court said it is not the job of the court to deal with the comparative details of the pricing.

Source: The Hindu, Business Standard