No probe in Rafale deal: SC dismisses review plea
NEWDELHI: The Supreme Court on Thursday refused to review its 2018 order that dismissed pleas seeking a court-monitored probe of alleged irregularities in the ₹59,000 crore Rafale fighter jet deal, reiterating its earlier decision that it was not for the court to determine the price at which aircraft are bought — a move the government said vindicated its stand.
“Supreme Court’s decision to dismiss the review petition on Rafale is a befitting reply to those leaders and parties who rely on malicious and baseless campaigns.Today’s decision, yet again, reaffirms Modi sarkar’s credentials as a govt which is transparent and corruption free,” home minister and Bharatiya Janata Party president Amit Shah tweeted.
In a unanimous verdict — written by justice SK Kaul for himself and Chief Justice of India Ranjan Gogoi, and a separate concurrent judgment by KM Joseph — the court said that unless there was an error on record, review applications did not need to be entertained. The judges also corrected an “error” in its December 14, 2018 judgment.
“We cannot lose sight of the fact that we are dealing with a contract for aircrafts, which was pending before different Governments for quite some time and the necessity for those aircrafts has never been in dispute,” the court said in the verdict by justices Kaul and Gogoi, refusing to embark on a “roving and fishing enquiry”. “We are, thus, of the view that the review petitions are without any merit and are accordingly dismissed.”
In his concurring judgment, justice Joseph said that the verdict would not stand in the way of the CBI taking action in the case on its own, after getting the necessary permissions from the government in accordance with the law. He, however, noted that under Section 17A of the Prevention of Corruption Act, prior approval of investigation is required, and according to the apex court’s judgment in the 2013 Lalita Kumari case, FIR in corruption cases have to be registered after a preliminary inquiry if the information is unclear about a cognizable offence. Such an inquiry was not asked for in the petitions.
The Congress claimed that Joseph’s observation paved the way for a “comprehensive criminal investigation” into the case and called for a Joint Parliamentary Committee probe. “Justice Joseph of the Supreme Court has opened a huge door into investigation of the Rafale scam. An investigation must now begin in full earnest. A JPC must also be set up to probe this scam,” Gandhi tweeted.
NEW DELHI : Former Indian Air Force (IAF) chief BS Dhanoa on Thursday said that the IAF was absolutely sure that the ~59,000 crore Rafale fighter jet deal with French military planemaker, Dassault Aviation, was above board.
“The price negotiations [for the deal] were done by the then deputy [IAF] chief [Rakesh Kumar Singh Bhadauria] who is now the chief of air staff. We were absolutely sure the deal was above board, “said Dhanoa, explaining why the IAF countered allegations of irregularities in the deal. “...When we defended the deal, we were criticised for making a political statement. We were, however, defending the deal on merit,” said Dhanoa, who retired in September.
The Supreme Court on Thursday rejected a batch of petitions seeking a review of its December 2018 verdict that dismissed pleas seeking a court-monitored probe into alleged irregularities in the deal. “I am happy the Supreme Court has stood by its earlier judgement,’’ said Dhanoa. “I sincerely hope [the Supreme Court’s ruling on Thursday] lays to rest all controversy and allows the IAF to do its duty and to acquire new platforms that are required.”
Dhanoa said the Rafale fighters are superb. “We must understand that the fighters are critical for India. The two squadrons of Rafale, an additional Russian made Su-30MKI and two more squadrons of indigenously-made Light Combat Aircraft [Tejas] will give us the required muscle.”
In October last year, Dhanoa had defended the deal amid sharp attacks from the Congress and other opposition parties.