Within hours of India deciding to re-tender the $600 million deal for supply of 197 light helicopters to the Army, France turned on the heat through diplomatic channels and immediately registered a protest against the decision as Eurocopter had been selected after technical trials.

It’s learnt that Indian Ambassador to France, Ranjan Mathai, was called to the French foreign office to convey the protest. Sources said Paris feels it was not fair to scrap the bid, especially after Eurocopter had been cooperative in the trials.

Diplomatic reverberations, sources said, were also felt in Germany where authorities had got in touch with the Indian Embassy in Berlin on the issue. Eurocopter, which was originally a French company is now spread across major countries in Europe.

The Indian Express had earlier reported that the deal was set to be called off on the recommendation of the Central Vigilance Committee (CVC),

While India did have valid reasons to go for a fresh tender, political motives are being ascribed as the US-based Bell helicopter was the other key contender. A re-tender, sources said, would provide another chance for Bell and the Russian Kamov choppers to qualify.

Earlier in the day, the Defence Ministry scrapped Eurocopter’s selection for the contract after “glaring discrepancies” emerged in the selection process. The contract was meant to replace the Army’s aging fleet of Cheetah and Chetak helicopters.

An official statement issued by the Ministry said that the procurement process has been cancelled and “fresh tenders for the same will be issued shortly.”

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