Prasad 'habitual offender', lying to save Modi on Rafale deal: Congress
New Delhi, Aug 13 : The Congress on Monday attacked Union Law Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad, saying he is "a habitual offender in weaving lies" and is "brazenly misleading people sewing together a web of lies" to save Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Rafale deal.
The party demanded that Modi government immediately set up a Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC) to probe the Rafale scam and must answer to the questions raised by Congress President Rahul Gandhi.
The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Monday hit out at Gandhi, saying he is spreading a "blatant lie" against Prime Minister Modi and his government over alleged corruption in the Rafale deal to escape the Income Tax Department inquiry against him related to the National Herald case.
Congress spokesperson Randeep Singh Surjewala said: "Modi government's Law Minister is a habitual offender in weaving lies based on figments of his imagination.
"Today again he brazenly misled the people by sewing together a web of lies to save his master, Narendra Modi," he said.
Surjewala asked: "Who benefitted from the unilateral Rafale deal which snatched the Rs 30,000 crore ... contract from HAL, thereby benefiting a private entity...?"
"Why did BJP President Amit Shah deliberately hide his son's contingent liabilities and credit facilities worth Rs 97.35 crore and how did ‘Shah-Zaada' multiply his earnings by 16,000 times?" he said.
Surjewla said the Congress President on Monday asked the same questions that he has been asking from the Prime Minister as to what is the reason of secrecy behind the Rafale scam deal.
"Why did PM Modi bypass the Cabinet Committee on Security (CCS)? Why was Rs 41,000 crore loss caused to public exchequer by 300 per cent rise in the purchase price of Rafale planes from Rs 526 crore per aircraft to Rs 1,670 crore per aircraft?" said Surjewala.
"Why was India denied the transfer of technology to manufacture Rafale aircraft? Why was defence procurement procedure violated with impunity? The country feels sorry for the Law Minister, because instead of talking on the issue at hand, he was busy deflecting public attention by joining imaginary issues," he added.
Since Ravi Shankar Prasad was speaking about the secrecy clause and repeating the alibi which Modi gave during the "No-Confidence motion" debate, he should refer to the agreement between India and France concerning the protection of classified information and material in the field of defence and tell which paragraph states that the commercial cost of defence deals cannot be revealed, he said.
"During the No Confidence Motion debate, Modi was conveniently hiding behind the statement of French Government for not disclosing the price.
"PM's stand is inconsistent with the statement made by French President Emmanuel Macron on March 8, 2018 in an interview to a prominent news channel, stating that 'if the Modi government wanted to disclose some of the details to the opposition and Parliament, he won't interfere in such a discussion'.
"Where does the French President say that the commercial cost of the Rafale deal cannot be disclosed?" Surjewala said.
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Suspected drones observed along IB in Jammu's Samba, being engaged: Army
Jammu, May 12 (PTI): Security forces are engaging suspected drones observed along the International Border in Samba district of Jammu region on Monday, an Army said.
This fresh incident of drone activity along the borderline comes barely hours after Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s first address to the nation following Operation Sindoor and the meeting of the DGMOs of India and Pakistan.
The Army, however, said there is no need to be alarmed.
“A small number of suspected drones have been observed near Samba in J&K. They are being engaged,” it said.
In the backdrop of the situation, several areas witnessed blackouts in Samba, Kathua, Rajouri, and Jammu.
Lights were switched off at the cave shrine of Mata Vaishno Devi and along its track as a precautionary measure, sources said.
On Monday, talks between the DGMOs were held during which issues related to the continuing commitment that both sides must not fire a single shot or initiate any aggressive or inimical action against each other were discussed, the Indian Army said.
It was also agreed that both sides would consider immediate measures to ensure troop reduction along the borders and in forward areas, it added.
The situation remained largely peaceful across Jammu and Kashmir, with no incidents of ceasefire violation reported along the Indo-Pak border Sunday overnight — marking the first calm night after 18 days of hostilities following the Pahalgam terror attack that left 26 people — mostly tourists — dead.
India and Pakistan on Saturday reached an understanding to cease all firing and military actions on land, air, and sea with immediate effect, following four days of intense cross-border drone and missile strikes that brought the two countries to the brink of full-scale war.
Eighteen days of intense hostilities following the Pahalgam terror attack and Operation Sindoor, which brought India and Pakistan to the brink of war, ended with a ceasefire that restored calm along the Line of Control, the International Border, and the hinterland in Jammu and Kashmir. The Army thwarted Pakistan’s Hamas-style kamikaze drone attacks during the escalation.
Since the night of April 24, hours after India suspended the Indus Waters Treaty in response to the Pahalgam terror attack, Pakistani troops repeatedly targeted Indian positions along the LoC — beginning in the Kashmir Valley and quickly expanding to the Jammu region.
The latest hostilities began in the northern districts of Kupwara and Baramulla in the Kashmir Valley, before spreading southwards to Rajouri, Poonch, Akhnoor, and the Pargwal sector along the International Border in Jammu district. The firing affected five border districts — Baramulla, Kupwara, Poonch, Rajouri, and Jammu.
The recent round of cross-border firing further undermined the ceasefire agreement reached in February 2021, which has largely been seen as ineffective due to Pakistan’s frequent violations along the 740-km-long LoC.
The April 22 terror attack, which claimed the lives of 26 people — mostly tourists — in Pahalgam’s Baisaran valley, triggered a strong response from the central government.
The India-Pakistan border stretches over 3,300 kilometers, divided into three segments: the International Border (IB), spanning about 2,400 km from Gujarat to Akhnoor in Jammu; the 740-km-long Line of Control (LoC) that divides Jammu and Kashmir; and the 110-km-long Actual Ground Position Line (AGPL), which separates the Siachen Glacier region.
WATCH: OP Sindoor continues. Minutes after PM Speech.
— Rahul Shivshankar (@RShivshankar) May 12, 2025
A small numbers of suspected drones being observed near Samba in J&K. Being engaged . pic.twitter.com/jmGmRkmQ26
