Chidambaram accuses Modi govt of ignoring defence procurement procedure in Rafale deal

Chidambaram said his party found that defence procurement procedure was ignored and several high-level committees were bypassed to secure it.

While addressing a press conference here at West Bengal Pradesh Congress Committee (WBPCC) headquarters in Kolkata, Chidambaram was quoted as saying by the media, "We think that the matter is serious enough that there should be a public debate and there should be a detailed inquiry."

"Why was the defence procurement procedure ignored in the Rafale deal," he said.

Congress chief Rahul Gandhi has been attacking the Narendra Modi government over the deal and alleged that the same had caused a loss of Rs 41,000 crore to the exchequer as compared to the price negotiated by the Congress-led UPA government.

He has also made allegations about the offsets.

Reliance Group Chairman Anil Ambani recently wrote to Congress President Rahul Gandhi over allegations regarding the Rafale fighter jet deal and said his party has been 'misinformed, misdirected and misled by malicious vested interests and corporate rivals.'

In his letter to Rahul, Anil expressed deep "anguish over continued personal attacks" by Rahul on him and termed all allegations as “baseless, ill-informed and unfortunate.”

Anil clarified to Rahul that Rafale fighter jets are not being manufactured by Reliance or the Dassault Reliance Joint Venture.

"All 36 planes are to be 100% manufactured in France, and exported from France to India," he clarified.