'Unadulterated trash': BJP's point-by-point rebuttal to Congress on Tata-Airbus facility

The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Monday rejected the Congress party's charge that the Tata-Airbus C-295 aircraft facility was shifted from Maharashtra to Gujarat. In a detailed tweet, BJP's Amit Malviya said that every word of Jairam Ramesh, who levelled the charge, is "unadulterated trash". 

Ramesh claimed that the Tata-Airbus C-295 aircraft facility project was supposed to be set up in Nagpur, but was shifted to Gujarat in 2022 on the eve of the assembly elections there. 

Malviya, however, junked this claim, saying as per the white paper tabled by the state government, the Maharashtra Industrial Development Corporation (MIDC) had not signed any memorandum of understanding for the procurement of land for the Tata-Airbus project. He also asked if the then MVA government was so worried about losing out on this opportunity, why it delayed the signing of MoUs or agreements to facilitate the establishment.

In his charge, Ramesh also claimed that in addition to the Tata-Airbus manufacturing plant, the Vedanta-Foxconn chip factory was also diverted from Maharashtra to Gujarat.

The BJP leader countered him again, saying the White Paper, presented by the Maharashtra govt, has pointed out that the MVA refused to consider or discuss the Foxconn project. "In fact, it failed to take it up in high-level discussions. It was the MahaYuti Govt, which was the first to discuss the project in a high-powered committee."

Ramesh's another charge was that the Textile Commissionerate Office, based in Mumbai for 80-plus years, was suddenly shifted to Delhi last year, for no clear reason whatsoever, despite the fact that the Mumbai metropolitan region (MMR) remains a huge hub of textiles. 

Responding to this, Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis had already clarified that only the Commissioner and other officers had been asked to function from Delhi on a temporary basis to increase synergy and enhance cooperation. He said that even the official order states that this restructuring exercise would involve shifting the textile commissioner and few key officials to the Ministry of Textiles to strengthen the technical arm of the Ministry.”

Earlier today, Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Spanish PM Pedro Sanchez inaugurated the Tata Aircraft Complex in Vadodara, India's first private facility to build military planes, where C295 aircraft will be produced. 

The Airbus C295 is a medium tactical transport aircraft that was designed and initially manufactured by the Spanish aerospace company CASA, which is now a part of the European multinational Airbus Defence and Space division. The C295 can also be used for medical evacuations, disaster response, and maritime patrol duties.