Rafale Deal: IAF Counters Rahul Gandhi’s Allegations Of Corruption, Has An Advice For Those Creating Ruckus

The Indian Air Force (IAF) today broke its silence on the allegations levelled by the Congress on the Narendra Modi government over the Rafale deal.

Talking to the media, Vice Chief of Air Staff Air Marshal Shirish Baban Deo has said that those creating a ruckus over the deal “don’t have full understanding and information” about the procurement of fighters. He also advised the people creating controversy over the deal to read the defence procurement procedure and the offset policy to understand the deal better.

"Actually, I shouldn’t comment but I can tell you... all this discussion and all these things going on in Rafale, it is because we know a lot about how everything went, we find that, people don’t have the information, okay,” he said.

“I am not authorised to volunteer information, so we just lump it. And these kind of things are not … we are just waiting for the aircraft to come. It is a beautiful aircraft. Very, very capable aircraft and it is a capability that we need very quickly," Republic TV quoted him as saying.

On being asked for his views on the issue of a private company being “favoured” instead of public sector Hindustan Aeronautics Limited, he said he personally favoured the idea of roping in the former for quick deliveries.

"As far as HAL is concerned, Tejas is taking an extraordinarily long time to make. Do you favour a second line in the private sector?,” he was asked.

He replied: "I personally do. The Air Force policy is that anything that comes to us quickly and money stays in the country, that is what is, you know, required… it is not necessary to know whether the money is with the DPSU or the money is with the private company, as long as money stays in the country, and investments are in the country and the aircraft come out quickly, why should we refuse it?"