Aircraft
Rafale Encounters Political Headwinds in India
The contract to buy 36 Rafales has become an election issue in India, where its pricing and offset deal have come under scrutiny
Having failed to conclude a deal for 126 Rafales to be mostly made in India, the country is buying 36 aircraft off the shelf. (Photo: Dassault Aviation)
Having failed to conclude a deal for 126 Rafales to be mostly made in India, the country is buying 36 aircraft off the shelf. (Photo: Dassault Aviation)

As India’s general elections draw closer this year, the deal signed in 2016 for 36 Dassault Rafales is getting attention in parliament as opposition political parties brawl over the contract they label as a “scam and graft,” while promising to make it an election issue against the present Narendra Modi government.