Upping the ante against the Centre, Congress President Rahul Gandhi has sought help from all political parties to corner the Government on the issue of Rafale deal and resolve the Andhra Pradesh crisis. Rahul posed a set of questions to the Government, asking it to disclose the "purchase price" of each fighter aircraft and details of how the agreement was reached.
He also accused the Government of "doublespeak" and "sacrificing" national interests and cited instances during the previous UPA Government when details of every defence deal were made public and placed before Parliament. "As the Modi Government stumbles and fumbles, hides and conceals, indulges in doublespeak, sacrifices national interest and refuses to answer on loss to public exchequer, India will continue to demand answers," he told reporters.
The Congress also listed a series of questions for the Government, including on the price, the secrecy surrounding the deal, the Government's silence on the issue and alleging that prior permission of the Cabinet Committee on Security was not taken.
"What is the price per aircraft of the 36 Rafale aircrafts being purchased by the Modi GovernmentIJ Did Raksha Mantri Nirmala Sitharaman not agree to share the price of Rafale aircrafts in a press conference in Raksha Bhawan on November 17, 2017IJ Why are PM, RM & FM hiding the 'purchase price'IJ" asked party spokesman Randeep Surjewala.
According to Surjewala, while Sitharaman refused to disclose the price on grounds of a "secrecy agreement", Finance Minister Arun Jaitley did not do so for reasons of "national security".
"Isn't a full disclosure of price of Rafale aircrafts in national interestIJ Why are two ministers of the Government speaking in two different voicesIJ Who are they trying to shieldIJ Why is the price of aircrafts shrouded in secrecy and cover-upIJ" he asked.
Surjewala wanted to know whether the per aircraft price of Rafale, according to international bids opened on December 12, 2012, comes to USD 80.95 million (Rs 526.1 crore) as against the Modi Government's per aircraft negotiated price of USD 241.66 Million (Rs 1,570.8 crore) as per current exchange rates.
Rahul also called upon all political parties to unite on the issue of grant of special status for Andhra Pradesh and other demands, including the speedy completion of the Polavaram project. "The Congress supports the just demands of the people of Andhra Pradesh for special category status and speedy completion of the Polavaram project. It's time for all parties to unite on this issue and support this call for justice," he tweeted.
Various parties have been raising the demand in both Houses of Parliament, leading to disruptions. The Congress and the TDP, which is part of the ruling NDA, have been at the forefront of protests inside and outside Parliament for granting special status to Andhra Pradesh.