Rafale deal: Delhi BJP protests near Cong HQ against Opposition allegations

The Delhi BJP protested near the Congress headquarters on Friday against the "baseless allegations" levelled by the opposition party in the Rafale jet deal, a day after the Supreme Court rejected pleas to review its judgment giving clean chit to the Modi government.

Led by their Delhi unit chief Manoj Tiwari, BJP leaders and workers raised slogans against the Congress party and demanded an apology from it for trying to "malign the image" of Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

The protesters tried to march towards the Congress head office on Akbar Road in Central Delhi but were detained by police and taken to a police station.

"The Congress and its leaders levelled baseless allegations in connection with the Rafale deal to malign the image of the prime minister. But their lies have been exposed after the Supreme Court order," Tiwari said.

He said Congress leaders, specifically Rahul Gandhi, should apologise to the BJP.

Gandhi had carried out an aggressive campaign against the multi-billion-dollar deal to buy 36 Rafale fighter aircraft from France before the 2019 Lok Sabha election. His party and other opposition parties disrupted the proceedings of both houses of Parliament for days over the issue.

But the Supreme Court on Thursday rejected pleas for a review of its December 2018 verdict in which it had said that there was no occasion to doubt the decision-making process in the controversial deal.

A separate and concurring verdict by Justice K M Joseph said the judgment "would not stand in the way" of the CBI from taking action on the complaint for lodging of an FIR.

This has prompted Gandhi to say the judge has left open a "huge door" for investigation of the deal.