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According to _The Hindu_’s latest report, three senior Defence Ministry officials who were domain experts on the seven-member Indian Negotiating Team (INT) in the Rafale deal, had come to a
“well-substantiated and clear conclusion” that the Modi government’s new Rafale deal with the French government for 36 flyaway aircraft’s was not on “better terms” than the previous offer
made by Dassault Aviation during the procurement process for 126 aircraft under the United Progressive Alliance (UPA) government. The three senior Defence Ministry officials also came to the
confusion that the delivery schedule of the first 18 (out of 36) flyaway Rafale aircraft in the new deal was also “slower” as compared to the one offered for the 18 flyaway aircraft during
the original procurement process. “These findings are directly contrary to the two central claims made by the Indian government of a cheaper deal and faster delivery of fighter aircraft,
claims that have been affirmed before the Supreme Court of India in official submissions,” said the report. The officials also displayed serious concern over the Indian government’s
acceptance of a ‘Letter of Comfort’ in lieu of a sovereign guarantee, legal issues relating to the IGA, offset issues, as well as Dassault Aviation’s restrictive trade practices. According
to the report, the three domain experts on the INT were: M. P. Singh, Adviser (Cost), a Joint Secretary-level officer from the Indian Cost Accounts Service; A.R. Sule, Financial Manager
(Air); and Rajeev Verma, Joint Secretary & Acquisitions Manager (Air). The trio had recorded their views in a strong note of dissent, dated June 1, 2016, which was submitted at the end
of the negotiations to the Deputy Chief of Air Staff (DCAS) who was also chairman of the negotiating team. The eight-page note expressing “deep concern” and “unease” was written more than a
month after the INT’s negotiations with the French side were completed and three months before the inter-governmental agreement was signed, on September 23, 2016 According to a report in
_The Caravan_ in December last year, the dissenting officers had also raised concerns about the new price of the aircrafts being €2.5 billion higher than the one first suggested by MP Singh,
the official in the team who was tasked with the job of calculating the initial price.