Rafale deal: Congress president Rahul Gandhi pressed an attack on Prime Minister Narendra Modi over the Rafale fighter jet deal on Thursday. Calling Narendra Modi 'corrupt man', Gandhi alleged that PM helped Anil Ambani pocket Rs 30,000 crore in the purchase of the fighter aircraft and said there is a clear-cut case of corruption against the PM of India in the Rafale deal case. He  While addressing the media, the Congress chief said, "I would like to clearly tell the youth of the country that the Prime Minister of India is a corrupt man." He further said that Dassault is sitting on a huge contract with the Indian government. "Dassault will say what the Indian govt wants it to say. Their internal document clearly stated that PM has said without this compensation the deal will not be done," Rahul Gandhi said. "They have admitted that it was 'imperative and obligatory' for Dassault Aviation to accept this compensation in order to obtain Rafale contract," Gandhi added. He demanded an investigation against the prime minister.

He also alleged the Defence Minister Nirmala Sitharaman's trip to France, as a part of a huge government "cover-up" on Rafale. "Why has suddenly Defence Minister rushed to France to #Rafale's plant? What is the emergency?" Gandhi asked. Gandhi said Rafale company's senior executive has clearly stated that choosing Anil Ambani's company was a compensation for the purchase of Rafale. Congress President said earlier former French President revealed that Indian PM had told them that Reliance should get a deal. Now a senior official of Rafale has said the same, he added. Gandhi reiterated that it is a clear cut case of corruption.

His attack at the government came a press conference following a report in the French media that Dassault Aviation, the manufacturer of Rafale, had to choose Ambani's firm Reliance Defence as its offsets partner in India as a trade-off for getting the deal. The government has been insisting that it had no role in the Dassault's choice of Reliance Defence. Dassault Aviation said in a statement that it has "freely chosen to make a partnership with India's Reliance Group".