India
PM Narendra Modi said, 'I can't imagine that truth would be crushed in this manner here. Why is that every time, games are played on matters of national security? The country would never forgive this.'
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday launched a frontal attack on Rahul Gandhi for his remarks on the Doklam crisis with China and his lies on the Rafale aircraft deal with France. The prime minister said that the Congress president should now get serious and "stop being childish" on the matters related to national security.
Modi also attacked the Congress president for his party's remarks on Army chief Gen Bipin Rawat and for calling the surgical strikes, done by the Army in September 2016 after the Uri attack, 'jumla strike' during the no-confidence debate in the Lok Sabha earlier in the day.
On the Doklam issue, the prime minister said while the Congress president was raising the issue of Doklam in Parliament, he was in a state of denial about his meetings with the Chinese ambassador at a time when the country was dealing with the crisis.
"We should also remember the series of incidents. When the whole government was working towards fulfilling its responsibility, those who talk of Doklam today were meeting with the Chinese ambassador. And after that, they were in a state of denial. Someone would say he met while others would say he didn't. Why so much of suspense? The Congress spokesperson had categorically denied that Rahul Gandhi had met the Chinese ambassador. In the meantime, a press release landed and Congress was forced to accept that the meeting did take place. Is there no seriousness about matters of national security? Can we continue acting childish everywhere?" Modi said.
On the allegations levelled by Rahul on the Rafale combat aircraft deal, the prime minister said the Congress was trying to suppress facts in the case by putting forth allegations without any proof or evidence.
"I can't imagine that truth would be crushed in this manner here. Why is that every time, games are played on matters of national security? The country would never forgive this. On the same issue, both the countries (India and France) had to issue a statement today to debunk the allegations. Will we continue to be childish in this manner? Is there no sense of responsibility? Your tactics of strangling the truth by continuously levelling allegations without any proof or evidence is well known to the nation."
Rahul, in the morning, had alleged that the Modi government was spreading lies about the existence of a secrecy pact with France which did not allow the price or other details of the agreement to be disclosed and that he was informed about the matter by French president Emanuel Macron himself during a meeting.
However, defence minister Nirmala Sitharaman soon rubbished Rahul's claims, showing a copy of the secrecy pact signed between India and France in 2008, which did not allow details of defence deals to be divulged. Later on, the French government also denied the allegations saying that there is indeed a secrecy pact between the two governments which covered the deal for the procurement of 36 Rafale aircrafts.
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