In light of reports claiming that the ministry of defence had written to the Prime Minister's Office, asking it to desist from carrying out parallel negotiations for purchase of Rafale, Congress President Rahul Gandhi on Friday launched a fresh salvo at Prime Minister Narendra Modi, saying it was now proved that Modi is personally guilty of corruption in the deal.
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“For one year, we have been saying that the Prime Minister is directly involved in the Rafale scam... It is absolutely black and white that the prime minister himself was carrying out a parallel negotiation with the French,” Rahul said, while addressing a press conference at the Congress headquarters.
An aggressive Rahul said, “It is now proved that the chowkidar is chor,” and insisted that the defence ministry's purported note, pointing out parallel negotiations by the PMO on Rafale, proved right former French President Francois Hollande's statement that Modi had asked him to give the offset contract to Ambani's company.
“I do not like to use strong words. But there is no other word that I can use other than that the prime minister is a thief,” Rahul said, and repeated his party's demand for a probe into the alleged corruption in the Rafale deal by a Joint Parliamentary Committee.
He said it was absolutely clear that the prime minister “has stolen Rs 30,000 crore of your money, bypassed a process and given it to his friend Mr Anil Ambani”, and remarked that it was now an open and shut case with the defence ministry stating that the Prime Minister's Office was carrying out parallel discussions for the agreement on purchase of Rafale fighter jets from France.
“It is written clearly here that the Prime Minister of India is a thief. The defence ministry has said this. My friends in the Air Force, pilots, this Rs 30,000 crore that could have been used for your safety, for your families, when you die if the plane crashes,” he said.
The latest revelations on Rafale has provided the Congress with ammunition to launch fresh attacks on Modi, and this comes in the midst of central agencies intensifying their probes into alleged corruption involving party leaders and their kin.
Asked about the investigations being undertaken against Congress leaders and their family members, a combative Rahul said, “Carry out whatever enquiry you want to conduct against Robert Vadra or P. Chidambaram or all of us. But please reply on the Rafale issue.”
The Congress president also said that the latest revelations prove further that the government has lied to the Supreme Court. “If the Supreme Court had seen this paper work, do you think the court would have given the judgment it gave? So that judgment is also in question. The CAG report that they said had already come out, never came out. Now it is all black and white.”
Referring to his meeting with former defence minister Manohar Parrikar, who is ailing, he reiterated that it was just a courtesy call, and that he did not discuss Rafale with him.
Responding to the prime minister's remarks that Rahul was rattled, he said, “Do I look rattled to you? Please take a good look at the PM and look at me and decide who looks rattled.”
