Islamabad, July 06, 2021 (PPI-OT): In France, initiation of formal investigation into “corruption” and “favouritism” in the 2016 multi-billion dollar deal with India for the purchase of much-hyped 36 Rafale jets has started shaking the pillars of Narendra Modi’s regime in India.
An analytical report released by Kashmir Media Service quoting French media has said that the French National Financial Prosecutor’s Office (PNF) has appointed a judge to investigate the deal. French investigative website Mediapart, in its report confirmed that a judicial probe into the suspected corruption was opened on 14 June in France over the 7.8-billion-euro Rafale contract of 2016. The new probe is an outcome of a series of reports done by Mediapart regarding the deal. Dassault Aviation, the manufacturer of the Rafale aircraft, has, however, denied corruption allegations, the KMS report added.
Sherpa, an NGO which works in the field giving support to victims of financial crimes, filed a complaint in April with PNF requesting the opening of a judicial investigation for corruption, favoritism and various financial offences likely to have occurred in the context of the sale of 36 combat aircraft manufactured by aviation major Dassault Aviation. The report citing findings by Mediapart said that the Agence Française Anticorruption (AFA) found suspicious payments made to a company linked to a middleman who was arrested by India’s Enforcement Directorate in 2019 in connection with the VVIP chopper scam.
As per the Mediapart, “The criminal investigation opened on June 14 and led by an independent magistrate, an investigating judge, will, among other elements, examine questions surrounding the action of former French President Francois Hollande, who was in office when the Rafale deal was inked, and current French President Emmanuel Macron, who was at that time Hollande’s economy and finance minister, as well as the then defence minister, now foreign affairs minister, Jean Yves Le Drian”. Sherpa said that its first complaint was filed with PNF in October 2018 to bring to attention “facts which, in our opinion, should have justified the opening of an investigation”.
The NGO said it was based on a complaint filed by former Indian Indian ministers Yashwant Sinha and Arun Shourie, and lawyer Prashant Bhushan with the Central Bureau of Investigation. Indian opposition parties also demand investigation in India. Congress has demanded an investigation by a joint parliamentary committee to probe corruption into Rafale deal. Congress says the Modi govt signed the Rafale jet contract with France at a much higher price than negotiated during their rule. While exposing the true face of Hindutva-aligned Indian media, the KMS report said that it is not pursuing the Rafale scam to save BJP from shame and disgrace.
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