A huge political row broke out after Trinamool Congress leader Kalyan Banerjee derisively mimicked Dhankhar during the opposition's protest on the stairs of Parliament on Tuesday against the suspension of MPs, drawing strong condemnation from the ruling BJP.
Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar has voiced his concern at Dassault's reported reluctance to meet the terms of the IAF tender, which required the French company to guarantee the 108 fighters that HAL would build in India, after the first 18 were supplied fully-built in France.
The issue of CAG and PAC was mentioned in paragraph 25 of the judgment of the top court which had held that there were no irregularities in the procurement of 36 Rafale jets from France.
Taking potshots at the prime minister, Gandhi said he should stop talking about the past and start doing his work.
Glimpses from the 54th International Paris Airshow.
Downplaying the allegations made by the Congress and former French President Francois Hollande's statement that the Indian government played a role in finalising Reliance Defence as Dassault Aviation's offset partner, Finance Minister Arun Jaitley on Sunday said that some statements are made to create controversy and these do not have credibility. In an exclusive interview to ANI, Jaitley added that circumstances and fact prove these statements wrong.
Former Defence Minister A K Antony also demanded making public the inter-governmental agreement with France. He wondered how India would bridge the gap with respect to China and Pakistan by acquiring just 36 aircraft when the original plan was for 126.
Politely decline to be prime minister, and hand the baton to someone else in the BJP -- like Sonia did to Manmohan Singh -- advises Krishna Prasad.
The two-day mega exercise is involving almost all its frontline fighter jets and other assets deployed in the region, people familiar with the drill said.
India and France on Monday inked an Inter-Governmental Agreement on the sale of 36 French fighter jets, Rafale, but were unable to sign the final deal due to some "financial" aspects, which are expected to be sorted out in "couple of days".
Taking a dig at Pakistan without naming it, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday said a country which was a supplier of aatank (terror) is struggling for aata (flour) these days.
The Centre said media reports cannot form the basis for seeking review of the judgement since it is well settled law that courts do not take decision on the basis of media reports.
'I have serious doubts about the longevity of the NDA government and the longevity of the 18th Lok Sabha itself.'
Union minister Smriti Irani reacted furiously to the Congress leader's barb at the prime minister over the Rafale purchase and the tense situation in Manipur.
Reliance Industries has been eyeing the relatively closed field of defence manufacturing and homeland security for the past year or so. In fact Reliance chairman Mukesh Ambani handpicked Dr Vivek Lall, a former top executive with Boeing last year to lead the company's foray into the sector
India has deferred until the next financial year its plan to finalise a deal for purchase of 126 Rafale combat aircraft from France since there is "no money left" for this now, Defence Minister A K Antony has said.
Congress chief urged Defence Minister Nirmala Sitharaman to answer the questions raised by the Congress on the multi-million dollar fighter jet deal.
French President Francois Hollande indicated on Sunday that the nearly Rs 60,000 crore Rafale jets deal is unlikely to be signed during his current visit although it is on the "right track".
In a letter sent to the Surat-based couple -- Yuvraj Pokharna and bride-to-be Sakshi Agrawal -- Modi described the content of the card as "ingenious" and asserted that it had inspired him to work even harder for the country.
HAL has integrated the ASRAAM (advanced short range air-to-air missile) for the Tejas Mark 1A. The Tejas Mark 1A will carry twin ASRAAM missiles with a range of 60 to 70 kilometres.
Air Chief Marshal Vivek Ram Chaudhari, chief of the air staff, flew a sortie in an IAF Rafale fighter while FASF Chief General Stephane Mille flew in an IAF Su-30MKI fighter.
Issues including the Rafale deal, construction of Ram Temple and Cauvery river water caused disruptions in the House.
Is it is necessary to play divisive politics to succeed in the next general elections? asks Dr Sudhir Bisht.
The over Rs 50,000-crore deal for supplying 126 Rafale combat aircraft and the security situation in the Af-Pak region are understood to have been discussed during the Defence Minister-level talks between India and France in New Delhi on Friday.
Rafale deal will bring relief to IAF: Parrikar
The city is in garba and dandiya practice mode.
As President Nicolas Sarkozy began talks with Indian leaders to boost Indo-French ties, a French company Friday offered to sell 40 of its new generation Rafale fighters to New Delhi on a fast track basis to help IAF maintain its combat edge.
Officials hint the visit could finally see a formal defence industrial road map being adopted by both nations.
With the United Progressive Alliance-II's tenure coming to an end, France had wanted India to sign a pact to provide government guarantee for completion of negotiation for 126 fighter aircraft with Dassault company but Defence Minister A K Antony has refused to do so.
Gandhi has been attacking the BJP government for allegedly inking the deal at a much higher price than the one the previous United Progressive Alliance regime had negotiated to benefit 'one businessman'.
The meeting comes a day after Gandhi alleged that the "Goa audio tapes", cited by the Congress to attack the Centre on the Rafale issue, were authentic and Parrikar was in possession of "explosive secrets" that give him power over Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
There was no word on the much-anticipated procurement of 26 naval variants of Rafale fighter jets by India from France.
The speech he gave in which he accused the Congress of getting black money in tempos from Ambani and Adani is remarkable.' 'It is a self-goal for sure, but indicates someone who has lost control, someone who is rattled.'
Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar has asked the Indian Air Force to focus on safety and conservation of available resources as he interacted with top commanders in New Delhi just days after India decided to buy 36 Rafale jets.
Dominic Thiem, U.S. Open winner in 2020, has secured a place in the main draw of the Australian Open after the withdrawal of Reilly Opelka, the tournament organisers confirmed on Friday.
The selection of Dassault's Rafale as India's new MMRCA fighter was only the latest step in the Air Force's long and painstaking process to pick itself a winner, writes Ajai Shukla.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi will visit Abu Dhabi on July 15.
The bribery scandal involving AgustaWestland's VVIP helicopter deal threatens to corner the Congress party and cast a shadow on India's latest $10 billion defence deal with Dassault for 126 Rafale fighter aircraft. Vicky Nanjappa reports
The bitter war between the Congress and the Bharatiya Janata Party over the Rafale deal on Tuesday saw more name-calling with the opposition party dubbing Finance Minister Arun Jaitley as a "babble blogger" and dismissing his "clown prince out-clowning himself" barb at Rahul Gandhi as "hollow rants of a court jester".
With alertness very high post the surgical strikes on terrorist camps in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir and the Uri attack, Indian Air Force is aggressively upgrading infrastructure in the eastern sector specially in Arunachal Pradesh.
