Rafale deal to be a major poll plank for Congress: Chavan

Congress leader Prithviraj Chavan Thursday said alleged irregularities in the Rafale fighter jet deal will a major poll plank of his party in the upcoming Lok Sabha polls.

He said the Supreme Court verdict in the mega defence deal can't be interpreted as a clean chit to the Narendra Modi government since the apex court was not an investigating agency.

The Modi government is running a campaign to give an impression that the Supreme Court has given it a clean chit in the Rafale deal, the former Maharashtra chief minister told reporters here.

"But we dont take the decision as a clean chit at all as the apex court is not an investigation agency," he added.

"The issue has not ended yet. It is going to be one of the major poll planks for the Congress in the next year's general elections," the former Union minister added.

He said in the inter-governmental agreement, the Modi government has agreed to pay Rs 36,000 crore more to France for buying Rafale jets which is a violation of existing norms.

The higher purchasing price for the fighter jets will also affect the government's coffers, Chavan said.

"Junior Defence Minister Subhash Bamre, while replying to a question in Parliament, had said the governments of India and France decided the price of a Rafale jet at Rs 670 crore."