AK Antony: “This govt is compromising national security”

The Narendra Modi government has failed to effectively deal with India’s hostile neighbours and provide adequate funds to the armed forces. Even on the diplomatic table, we are losing ground. Defence deals are under the scanner; national interest is being compromised. AK Antony, former Defence Minister, MP and senior Congress leader with decades of experience in Parliament, says all this and more to National Herald’s Bhasha Singh. Antony also says the government is making a deliberate attempt to render Parliament irrelevant

You are a veteran parliamentarian and statesman. How do you see the four years of the Modi government?

Just count the number of rallies they have conducted in the last four years. In all their rallies, money has flowed like water. Look at their mega programmes, their electioneering et al and you see them spending money like anything. From where are they getting the money? It is obvious that the flow is coming from corporate houses, with shady deals in the background. Now, this government can’t claim to be a clean government. They have been caught out, they are corrupt and people have realised it. The whole hype, which was built around false promises and jargon, is going bust. We are losing our ground when it comes to diplomacy. We listen to announcement of so many MOUs but in reality, only a tiny fraction of that materialises. This government is doing all kinds of anti-people things. That is why there is such widespread resentment against the government. This will surely reflect in the next elections. The mood has started changing. Though the Modi Sarkar is trying hard to control damage, it will be very difficult.

The Modi government came to power riding on the jargon of nationalism and secure borders. But things have worsened?

Yes. Their true colours and intentions are getting exposed. The present government and people sitting in power used to tell us that we were neglecting national security, that we were not concerned about our armed forces, that we were not giving them enough funds. But look at what they have done. They have reduced the defence budget. It has never been so low. In front of the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Defence, serving officers have said that they don’t have money to spend. There is complete mess. This should not have ever happened.

Conflicts with our neighbours have increased, especially with China?

One thing is very obvious that whatever the Modi government may claim, no neighbour is with us. We are losing out diplomatically. I don’t want to talk much about China, but it is very clear that we have given into their pressure. We declare that we are ready to take them head-on and, then, bow down under their pressure. The treatment we are doling out to the Dalai Lama is clear to the whole world. The foreign policy of the Modi government is a complete flop. We don’t have good friends now to stand by us. We have messed up our ties with China, Pakistan, Bangladesh and even Russia. The way China is moving into Bhutan and our inability to do anything are worrisome. It is the same story in Nepal and Sri Lanka. Show me where India has gained; we are losing our ground everywhere.

There have been continuous disruptions in Parliament. What is the government doing about it?

I think the Modi Sarkar, for its own reasons, doesn’t want this session to continue. They want a washout. If Parliament functions, then they have to answer many uncomfortable questions about the banking scams, the Rafale deal, the tragedy of the 39 Indians killed in Iraq, and so many more issues. To avoid getting cornered by the Opposition, the Modi government wants to impede the functioning of Parliament. They want to run away from facing questions on the biggest banking scam till date — the PNB scam. In my memory, this is the first time that a government is not trying to find any solution to this impasse. Earlier too, such scenarios have surfaced but the government moved to find solutions. This government wants this chaos to continue.

There is a no-confidence motion which the government is just ignoring. As far as I know, no government can do this?

Yes. The convention is that the moment there is a notice of no-confidence motion, no other matter is supposed to be taken up unless the no-confidence motion is disposed off. But the government is doing just the opposite. The Speaker is not doing her duty. At least, she should ask which MPs are supporting the no-confidence motion and put the House in order. Actually, they have their own timing and they are acting according to that, not according to the rules and conventions of our parliamentary democracy. It is a very deliberate attempt to crush the basic ethos of parliamentary democracy.

But the government is saying that it’s the Opposition that is not allowing Parliament to function?

I am in the Rajya Sabha and the Opposition made it clear there that they wanted discussion. Congress wants discussion. Now it is the responsibility of the government that they allow the Parliament to function. We want to have a discussion on the Iraq tragedy. How did the government lie to the families of the victims? Now, the government is saying they were killed one year back and the government was completely unaware of this. If this is true, then it is the failure of the government. And if they were aware, then they have to answer as to why they misguided the victims’ families and the nation. We also want to have discussions on giving special status to Andhra Pradesh.

Why is the Modi government doing so?

They don’t want voting on the no-confidence motion. They have brute majority but still they are trying to pursue some of the parties to not support this motion. That’s why they are playing with time. They have made this an ego issue.

What is your take on the Make in India claims in the defence sector?

There is no Make in India happening. They are only claims, false claims. The Modi government has damaged the biggest Make in India project mooted by our government. We tried our best to promote PSUs like HAL which has been sabotaged by the Modi government. In the last four years, there has been no defence deal which has guaranteed technology transfer.

You were the Defence Minister. There is a huge controversy around the Rafale fighter jet deal and the role of the PM in it. What are your observations?

More then anything else, I feel that we have lost a golden opportunity to produce a stateof-the-art fighter aircraft in India. During the UPA’s time, the Indian Air Force told the Indian government that if we didn’t buy fighter planes urgently, then by 2017, our squadron strength will come down to 31. Basically this alarm bell was rung in 2002 when the NDA government was in power. At that time, the squadron strength was 41 and planes like MIG- 21, MIG-23 and MIG-25 were in a phase-out mode. They said they needed 126 fighter planes. We took the decision. Six were listed, out of which three were crossed out as they were found not to be technically sound. Then, in the final round, the Rafale won for being the lowest bidder. In our request for proposal, we laid down some conditions. First, we said we would buy only 18 from abroad while the remaining 108 would be produced in India. That would have been the mother of all ‘Make in India’ projects. Secondly, we insisted these 108 would be produced by our own public sector HAL. In fact, only HAL can produce fighter aircraft in India. The third condition was of full technology transfer. It was to be a big boost for India. If that would have happened, HAL could have got its hands on the latest fighter aircraft technology. This would have changed the whole scenario of the Indian defence manufacturing sector. And fourthly, they could have got 50 per cent offset and logistic support. As the deal stands today, there is no technology transfer. There is no Make in India.

How did the Modi government arrive at this magic number of 36 planes?

I don’t know, it is a big mystery. In 2002, IAF was asking for 126. The squadron strength is far less now. So, the government owes an answer to the nation. India is facing threat from two sides now. So, in comparison to 2002, we need more aircraft. But the Modi Sarkar is not ready to listen to anybody. They are compromising on national security.

The Modi govt is saying that the deal signed during your time was faulty?

If so, then they should have cancelled the deal. They have overruled many of our decisions. They have not done so. Instead, they changed the whole deal and went for just 36 planes from the same company. Nobody is asking how the PM could announce a new deal when the contract for 126 Rafales was still on. What he Modi did is unprecedented. All defence deal have to go according to the Defence Acquisition Council.

How do you see the new offset partner, Anil Ambani’s company?

As a former Defence Minister, I don’t want to comment on the new offset partner, until the Modi government comes clear on details of the deal. It has not made its stand clear. In the offset agreement, there is a clause that foreign partner can select their partner provided that partner has experience in production of the eligible product, which in this case is the fighter jet. And, according to me, in India, only one company has this capacity, experience and eligibility and that is HAL. According to us, price of the aircraft in the new deal is a lot higher than the one in the earlier, again without any concrete reasons cited. There is no technology transfer. So logically. The price should have been lower. So we strongly believe that there should be an independent inquiry into this. If the government has not done anything wrong, they should bring all facts out in the open. The whole drama around the security clause is a sham. We want to know about the finances only. It is public money, after all. The price should have been lower. So we strongly believe that there should be an independent inquiry into this. If the government has not done anything wrong, they should bring all facts out in the open. The whole drama around the security clause is a sham. I have disclosed the terms of the Sukhoi deal among others. We want to know about the finances only. It is public money, after all.

The Modi government is claiming that they cannot disclose the details of the Rafale deal as it will be against national interest?

They have compromised with national interest. During the UPA-II government (2009-14) when I assumed assumed office, the transparency norms in governance had set in. Lot of this is due to Right to Information (RTI) Act. Basically we wanted to look at the issue of defence from people’s perspective. That is why during the UPA-II regime, as then Defence Minister, I had disclosed in Parliament the pricing details of many defence purchases, like the Admiral Gorshkov aircraft carrier, upgrade cost of Mirage fighters and that of the Sukhoi deal. The Modi government and the Defence Ministry should not forget that even the Ministry of Defence is now under the ambit of RTI. Therefore, for the sake of transparency, the government must place all details on the table.