NEW DELHI: The Parliamentary Standing Committee on Defense saw a heated exchange between the congressional MP Rahul gandhi and panel chair Jual Oram on Thursday after Gandhi demanded to know from the government why it had reduced an order for 126 Rafale fighter jets to 36, and how it intended to “compensate” for the loss, especially in the face of aggression. joint. India was facing the hands of the Chinese and Pakistani armed forces.
Sources said that Oram prevented Gandhi from asking questions about the LAC situation and Rafale persistently and said they were “out of context”. However, Gandhi continued after insisting that his consultations related to defense purchases, within the mandate of the discussion on the Demand for Subsidies for the Ministry of Defense.
Later, however, Oram accepted Gandhi’s request for a separate and more detailed discussion on the situation in LAC and China. He said a separate meeting will be convened after discussions on budget allocations are completed.
However, a ruling party MP said Gandhi’s arguments were invalid as India is “fully equipped for limited engagement” and numerical comparisons of aircraft do not make “sense” in light of the nuclear capability of the three nations. “We are capable enough to defend ourselves in a war on two fronts. People should not forget that we are also a nation with nuclear capabilities and strategic assets, ”he said.
The debate, which followed a presentation by the Indian army and Air Force officials on their joint readiness in LAC and vis-à-vis India’s aggressive East and West neighbors China and Pakistan, also saw the CDS tell the House panel that India is developing capacity for indigenous fighter jets, both at DRDO and HAL. Rawat, the sources said, also told the panel that HAL was commissioned to build heavy combat aircraft, which are expected to be deployed by 2023.
As Gandhi sought to know what India would do in the meantime, another panel member tried to find out why HAL, which the government deemed “unfit” to “even carry out repairs on Rafale fighter jets” until two years ago, now he was taking on the job of building fighter jets for the Indian armed forces. The sources said they also asked why the government did not award contracts to HAL for the assembly, repair and maintenance of the Rafale fighter jets.
During Thursday’s meeting, several MPs also raised the issue of inadequate budget allocations to the Defense Ministry, stating that the allocation percentage for both the Indian Army and Air Force had been reduced in percentage terms compared to 2014. Without However, the defense secretary assured the panel that the ministry will obtain additional allocations as required.
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