Scorpene leak: Will take 'mitigation measures' based on committee report, says Navy Chief

Over 22,000 pages of top secret data on the capabilities of six submarines being built for the Indian Navy have been leaked

Expressing concern over the Scorpene submarine data leak, Navy Chief Admiral Sunil Lanba on Monday said they have viewed it very seriously, adding that they have set up a high-level committee and based on its report, they would look for mitigation measures.

"Any leak of information is viewed very seriously. We have viewed the leak of the Scorpene data very seriously and we have asked DCNS to launch an urgent investigation into this. We ourselves have set up a high-level committee to investigate into this. Based on the report of the committee, we will see what mitigation measures need to be taken," Lanba told the media here.

Embattled French defence firm DCNS has approached the Supreme Court in Australia seeking an injunction against newspaper, The Australian, from further publishing the leaked documents of India's Scorpene submarine project.

The DCNS has also sought a court order to the newspaper to hand over the documents in its possession and removal of the contents from its website.

DCNS lawyer Justine Munsie in affidavit said that publication of this highly valuable document has been causing a direct harm to DCNS and its customer in terms of spread of sensitive and restricted information, image and reputation.

The newspaper had said that it will publish the documents regarding the weapons system of the submarine soon.

Over 22,000 pages of top secret data on the capabilities of six highly advanced submarines being built for the Indian Navy in Mumbai in collaboration with a French company have been leaked.

The move by the DCNS comes after a former commander of US Pacific fleet Submarine Force warned that the leaks would undermine the confidence in the ability of French companies to protect classified information.