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Amit Shah says Congress campaign against Rafale deal marked the first time since Independence that India ‘has been misled on such an important issue’.

New Delhi: Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) president Amit Shah Friday challenged his Congress counterpart Rahul Gandhi to present the documents that led him to allege corruption in the Narendra Modi government’s deal with France and Dassault Aviation to purchase 36 Rafale jets.

His statements came after the Supreme Court dismissed petitions seeking a probe into the deal and the grant of an associated offset contract to Anil Ambani’s Reliance Defence.

Coming months before the 2019 Lok Sabha elections, the verdict was seen as a shot in the arm for the BJP, which has been accused by the Congress as well as former members Yashwant Sinha and Arun Shourie, of grave irregularities in the deal.

“I want Rahul Gandhi to reveal the source of his information,” Shah said at a press conference. “He should tell the people of this country.

“We are ready for a debate on the Rafale deal,” he added. “We will request for as much time as they want to discuss the issue. Bring all the documents and prove the allegations.”

Shah asked Gandhi to apologise to the nation as well as the defence forces for his allegations, which he said could have hurt their morale.

“Since Independence, this is the first time the country was misled on such an important issue,” he said. “It is doubly unfortunate that it is done by the Congress chief.

“The Supreme Court has proved that truth always triumphs,” he said.

Quoting the court’s observations, he added: “Four PILs were filed in the SC. Decision-making, pricing, and choice of offset partner were the three issues raked up.

“On the decision-making process, the court has shown satisfaction after the inspection of records,” Shah said. “It is said that the country cannot wait for defence instruments when neighbouring countries have updated their technology in defence.”

Saying that the court had noted the “financial advantage” the Rafale deal spelt for the nation, Shah added that the offset contract had also been absolved.

“The court held that this is not a case of commercial favouritism by the government,” he said. “The court said it could not base its judgment on an individual’s perception and the court should not interfere,” he added.

He then questioned why the Congress-led UPA, which had launched the first tender in 2007, hadn’t been able to finalise the deal in the seven subsequent years when it was in office.

“The Modi government has done government-to-government deals,” Shah said. “Why did the Congress not conduct such deals? The Congress always leaves scope for mediators in its deals,” he added, making a veiled reference to allegations of bribery in the UPA-era AgustaWestland deal. A suspected middleman in the deal, British national Christian Michel, was recently extradited by the UAE to India.

“The reasons for the delay [in the procurement] of aircraft should be put before the nation,” he added.

Also read: Congress sticks to demand for Parliamentary probe into Rafale deal even after SC verdict

The road ahead

Union minister Rajnath Singh, too, demanded an apology from the Congress for making the Rafale deal an issue.

Speaking to the media at Parliament House, Singh said, “The BJP was confident about the deal and, today, after the Supreme Court decision, the situation has become crystal clear.”

“All allegations levelled by the Congress are baseless,” he added. “I believe they cannot spread lies anymore.”

Asked about the Congress’ demand for a joint parliamentary committee probe, Singh said there was no question of any other probe after the Supreme Court verdict.

Also read: Apart from Ram, the Supreme Court is BJP’s best friend in 2019

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