JET, SET GO

How the Anil AmbaniDassault partnership came to be, and the reasons behind the current turbulence

FEB. 12, 2015 Reliance Infrastructure tells BSE it’s set up three wholly owned subsidiaries: Reliance Defence Systems Pvt Ltd, Reliance Defence Technologies Pvt Ltd, and Reliance Defence and Aerospace

MAR. 4, 2015 Anil Ambani acquires Pipavav Shipyard for `2,082 crore

MAR. 28, 2015 Anil Ambaniled Reliance Defence is incorporated

APR. 11, 2015 Prime Minister Narendra Modi signs MoU with President Francois Hollande for the sale of 36 Rafale aircraft in flyaway condition on terms that would be better than conveyed by Dassault Aviation as part of a separate process under way

JUL. 2015 Defence minister Manohar Parrikar announces the 126 MMRCA deal’s scrapped

AUG. 2015 Maharashtra government allots 289 acres in MIHAN SEZ, Nagpur, to Reliance Aerostructure

DEC. 2015 Reliance Entertainment invests ¤1.6 million in a movie co-produced by Hollande’s partner Julie Gayet. Mediapart says the investment was made by an investment fund of a Frenchman who has known Anil Ambani for 25 years

SEPT. 23, 2016

Defence minister Manohar Parrikar inks intergovernmental agreement with French defence minister Jean-Yves Le Drian for 36 Rafale jets in New Delhi

AUG. 24, 2016 Cabinet Committee on Security approves procurement of 36 Rafale aircraft via the IGA

OCT. 3, 2016 Anil Ambani’s RDL and Dassault Aviation announce DRAL

JV. Dassault is to make compensation investments worth 50% of purchase value

NOV. 18, 2016 MoS Defence Subhash Bhamre tells the Lok Sabha that India was paying Rs 670 crore per Rafale minus ‘associated equipment, weapons, India-specific enhancements, maintenance support and services’

DEC. 23, 2016 Indian and France sign contract for 36 Rafale fighter jets; aircraft to be delivered between 2019 and 2022

JAN. 24, 2017 Anil Ambani’s Reliance Entertainment issues press release announcing IndoFrench production nOmber One

MAR. 9, 2018 President Emmanuel Macron arrives in New Delhi on 4-day visit. Dassault supplies Indian delegation with a list of 72 offset partners. Anil Ambani is one of them