Rafale deal saved thousands of crores for exchequer: Arun Jaitley

NEW DELHI: Union minister Arun Jaitley on Sunday dubbed Congress president Rahul Gandhi a "failed student" who was envious of PM Modi and said the use of "half document" to attack the government had fully destroyed the credibility of the allegations against the Rafale deal.

"When its falsehood collapsed, a half document was produced to perpetuate the falsehood. Little did the creators of this falsehood realise that the cost of producing half a document is loss of full credibility," Jaitley wrote in a blog, referring to Congress's allegations that defence ministry officials had objected to PMO intervention in the deal.

He said the past two months had witnessed several fake campaigns and each one of them had failed to cut ice. "Falsehood doesn't have longevity. The 'compulsive contrarians' continued to jump from one falsehood to another".

"The Rafale deal not only strengthens the combat ability of the IAF but saved thousands of crores for the exchequer," the minister said. He said Rahul's speeches on Rafale were based on a personal hatred for the PM . "A failed student always hates the class topper. The context of the speeches points more to college-level lumpenisation in content," he added.