Rafale: Oppn leaders slam 'parallel negotiations' by PMO; Kejriwal demands 'independent CBI raid'

Attacking the Prime Minister's Office for alleged "parallel negotiations" in the Rafale deal, opposition leaders on Friday asked the government to come clean on objections raised by the defence ministry at that time with AAP leader Arvind Kejriwal going to the extent of demanding an "independent" CBI raid to seize all related files and arrest everyone involved.

Latching on to an article in The Hindu newspaper, which claimed that the Defence Ministry had raised strong objections to "parallel discussions" conducted by the PMO during negotiations for the Rs 59,000-crore fighter jet deal between India and France, the opposition leaders also raised questions on the role of Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

Defence Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, however, dismissed the media report as "flogging a dead horse" and accused the opposition of playing into the hands of multinational companies and vested interests. She also said that periodical enquiries by the PMO cannot be construed as interference.

Reacting to the report, former Jammu and Kashmir chief minister Omar Abdullah tweeted, "I'd like to see how this one is explained by the talking heads aligned to the BJP. @PMOIndia 'weakened the negotiating position of the Ministry of Defence & the Indian Negotiating Team' as per this note in a MOD file that went up the the Defence Minister."