Cong picks Rafale to shoot down Govt

Party forms panel to draw strategy to expose ‘scam’ in aircraft deal

The Congress on Saturday decided to launch a nation-wide agitation to corner the Modi Government alleging scam in the Rafale deal.

Party chief Rahul Gandhi, who has been taking Prime Minister Narendra Modi head on seeking a clarification on the deal, convened a meeting of top Congress functionaries from across the country to deliberate on how to mount an attack on Modi and Defence Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on the issue.

Following which, the party on Saturday formed a six member committee headed by former Union Minister S Jaipal Reddy to prepare the blueprint of the proposed agitation to highlight the irregularities leading to a major scam in the Rafale deal.

The party has already demanded an investigation by a joint parliamentary committee (JPC) into the Rafale deal.

“It was decided that corruption, scams of the Modi Government, particularly the Rafale scam, will be taken to people of India. In the next 30 days, Congress workers will do district and State-level demonstrations. We will ensure a fair probe, independent probe, a JPC is constituted immediately. We will not be deterred and pushed back,” AICC chief spokesperson Randeep Surjewala said while briefing the media on the outcome of the meeting.

The party, he said, discussed the Rafale deal in details and claimed that the scam has cost the exchequer Rs 41,000 crore. He said a company belonging to the friend of the Prime Minister has been given a contract worth Rs 30,000 crore under the deal after snatching it away from Hindustan Aeronautics Limited.

In addition to Reddy, other members of the committee are Shakti Sinh Gohil, Arjun Modwadia, Pawan Khera, Priyanka Chaturvedi and Jaiveer Shergill.

Party sources said as per the strategy, about 50 Congress leaders will conduct Press conferences in 100 cities across the country in the next few days on the Rafale deal.

In the past few months, the Gandhi scion has raised the Rafale deal to target the BJP on multiple occasions. Rahul also compared the price of Rafale aircraft under the UPA regime and the NDA Government to throw light on the discrepancy in the cost.

Besides, other political challenges in poll bound States of Madhya Pradesh, Chhatisgarh and Rajasthan and more corruption and scams, including alleged banking scandals, of the Modi Government were also deliberated.

In the meeting, Rahul also demanded that Kerala floods be declared as a “national calamity” and asked Modi not to play politics in such matters. He claimed that while the Central Government has only provided Rs 100 crore relief to the State Government, there has been a huge loss of life and damage to properties to the extent of Rs 2,000-3,000 crore due to the floods.

“We believe Modiji should stop discriminating in the matters of flood relief between BJP and non-BJP Governments. Only mere Rs 100 crore has been given to Kerala while there is devastation. It’s time the PM rises above political partisan game and come forward as a nation to help the people of Kerala and Karnataka and declare Kerala floods as a national calamity,” he said.

“Dear PM, please declare #Kerala floods a National Disaster without any delay. The lives, livelihood and future of millions of our people at stake,” tweeted Rahul.