Former Indian Air Force chief Rakesh Kumar Singh Bhadauria on Sunday joined the Bharatiya Janata Party.
At a press conference on Sunday, Bhadauria praised the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the steps taken by the Union government to strengthen and modernise India’s defence forces.
Bhadauria, who hails from Uttar Pradesh, said that out of the over 40 years he served in the Indian Air Force, “the golden period of my service was the last eight to ten years under the leadership of the BJP government”.
“The tough steps taken by this government to empower and modernise our armed forces and make them self-reliant have not only given rise to a new capability in the forces, but also given them a new confidence,” he said. “The results of the self-reliant move by the government can be seen on the ground...”
Bhadauria was inducted into the party in the presence of Union Minister Anurag Thakur and BJP General Secretary Vinod Tawde.
He served as the Air Chief Marshal from September 2019 to September 2021.
In September 2022, Bhadauria became the chief nodal officer of the Uttar Pradesh Defence Industrial Corridor.
Some of the Indian Air Force’s Rafale aircraft have been given the “RB” series tail numbers to recognise Bhadauria’s role in negotiating the deal to acquire the fighter jets from France, according to reports.
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