Rafale Papers: how Indian tycoon sought help of Macron and finance minister over tax bill
France’s 7.8-billion-euro sale to India in 2016 of 36 Dassault-built Rafale fighter jets, the subject of an ongoing French judicial investigation, is mired by suspected corruption involving politicians and industrialists. As Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who signed the deal, prepares to attend France’s Bastille Day celebrations as guest of honour, documents obtained by Mediapart reveal how Modi’s billionaire friend, Anil Ambani, boss of the Indian conglomerate Reliance Group, which was handed a lucrative contract as a condition of the Rafale sale, directly solicited the intervention of then economy minister Emmanuel Macron and finance minister Michel Sapin in a bid to escape a 151-million-euro tax claim against his French subsidiary. The tax adjustment was finally cut down to 6.6 million euros. Yann Philippin reports.
IndiaIndia’s prime minister Narendra Modi is to be French President Emmanuel Macron’s guest of honour at this year’s Bastille Day military parade in Paris on July 14th, which will notably include a flypast of Indian Air Force (IAF) Rafale fighter aircraft.
