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Rafale is not government-to-government deal: Congress
New Delhi, Nov 14 (IANS) The Congress on Wednesday claimed the agreement to purchase the 36 French Rafale jets was not a government-to-government deal.
Keeping up the attack over the Rafale “scam”, Congress also said the French defence major was a “non-compliant” company and the Modi government should not have entered into a deal with it.
“This is not a government-to-government deal, because no such procedure exists in France. France has never entered into a government-to-government defence deal. Moreover, it was not the French government which negotiated the deal with India.
“It was a deal between the government of India on one side and Dassault Aviation, a private entity on the other. Since the French government was not involved in the negotiations, how can it be government-to-government deal?” questioned Congress leader Kapil Sibal.
Besides saying the deal was made in gross violations of the Defence Procurement Procedure(DPP), Sibal said Dassault Aviation was a non-compliant company and as such was not entitled to be awarded the deal.
“Dassault neither gave any sovereign guarantee for the delivery of the jets nor did it offer to undertake responsibility for the jets that were to be manufactured in India. This made Dassault a non-compliant company and the Indian government cannot deal with a company which had become non-compliant,” he said.
Sibal also targeted Dassault CEO Eric Trappier for “lying”.
“Trappier says they entered into joint venture because they knew Reliance had land. But Reliance applied for land on June 16, 2015, much later to their agreement. When they entered the joint venture, they didn’t even know that Reliance was going to apply for land.
“He (Trappier) also said Dassault didn’t go with HAL (Hindustan Aeronautics Limited) because it didn’t have land. But the fact is HAL had not only applied for land it already had lot of land in the vicinity of the airport in Bengaluru.
“All of Trappier’s assertions are not true,” said Sibal on the Dassault CEO who has come out in support of the deal saying it was “clean”.
The Congress’ fresh attack came on a day when the Supreme Court reserved its judgment into a clutch of petitions questioning the Rafale deal and seeking a court-monitored probe into it.
Arguing in defence of the deal before a Chief Justice Ranjan Gogi headed bench, Attorney General K.K. Venugopal admitted before the court that there was no sovereign guarantee from the French government for the deal.
Congress has been going hammer and tongs against the ruling BJP over the deal alleging personal culpability of Prime Minister Narendra Modi in the “scam”.
–IANS
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Dr. Abhishek Verma Dedicates a Shelter in Memory of His Mother, Veena Verma, at KGMU; Inaugurated by Daughter Nicolle Verma
World-renowned business tycoon Dr. Abhishek Verma has supported Foodman Vishal Singh’s Hunger-Free World mission. In memory of his mother, Late Veena Verma, who was a 3 term Rajya Sabha MP.
Dr. Verma dedicated a state-of-the-art free permanent shelter for the attendants of patients at KGMU Medical University, Lucknow, under the aegis of Vijay Shree Foundation. His daughter, Nicolle Verma, inaugurated the shelter.
During the event, Foodman Vishal Singh honored Nicolle Verma by presenting her with a memento. Mrs. Nidhi Sharma and Avantika Yadav, associated with the organization, welcomed her with garlands. Following this, Nicolle Verma distributed essential items to the attendants and also handed out fruits. She became emotional remembering her grandmother on her birth anniversary.
On this occasion, she also inaugurated the “Veena Verma Sevalaya” in memory of her grandmother, Veena Verma, to serve the attendants. She expressed, “I feel proud that my family is engaged in nation-building as well as social service. Today, in collaboration with Vijay Shree Foundation founder Foodman Vishal Singh Ji, I feel immensely proud to dedicate this shelter for the poor, helpless, and needy attendants of patients battling serious illnesses like cancer. I am honored to be associated with the Hunger-Free World Mission for humanity.”
Inspired by the continuous humanitarian service provided by Vijay Shree Foundation over the past 17 years, Nicolle Verma donated 10 lakh rupees to support the cause. The purpose of this donation is to ensure that services continue for the needy attendants of patients suffering from severe illnesses in hospitals, as facilitated by Foodman Vishal Singh.
It is noteworthy that Dr. Abhishek Verma’s family has a legacy of public and philanthropic service. They are helping millions to carry forward the values and service work of their parents. On the occasion of his mother’s birth anniversary, Dr. Abhishek Verma dedicated this state-of-the-art permanent shelter at Lucknow Medical College to serve the attendants of patients through the Vijay Shree Foundation.
Supporting Foodman Vishal Singh’s Hunger-Free World mission, Dr. Abhishek Verma assured that he would continually support keeping this flame of humanity alive. He also promised to assist in providing medicines to the helpless patients.
Continuing her grandmother’s legacy of service, Nicolle Verma personally served food to the needy patients and attendants. She said, “It is our good fortune to have received the joy of doing this noble work today through Foodman Vishal Singh. I have taken another step forward in carrying my family’s values and cooperation by joining hands with the Vijay Shree Foundation. My father taught me to serve and help the needy, and I feel happy when I bring a smile to someone’s face.”
On the birth anniversary of the late Veena Verma, the event organizer, Vijay Shree Foundation founder Foodman Vishal Singh, said, “We feel proud and happy that Dr. Abhishek Verma, a globally renowned business tycoon, has extended his support to uplift our country from the hunger index. Today, on his mother’s birth anniversary, he inaugurated a state-of-the-art permanent shelter at Lucknow Medical College, which will always be helpful for the needy attendants of patients. It is a pleasure for me and the organization to receive the affection of Mr. Verma.”
The event was attended by General Manager Verma Family Office Hemant Garg, Sonu Rajput, and the organization’s volunteers, including Sandeep Singh, Parmeshwar Ji, Prashant Rao Gautam, Balram Singh, Ramesh Chaudhary, Suman, Jeetu, Anil, Suraj, Vinay, Manish Bhadauria, Manas Mehrotra, Vivek, Apurv, Happy, and others.