Rafale deal: Congress gives privilege notices against PM Modi, Sitharaman

New Delhi, July 24: The Congress party on Tuesday gave notices in Lok Sabha seeking permission for moving a breach of privilege motion against Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Defence Minister Nirmala Sitharaman claiming they misled the House on the Rafale fighter jet deal during the no-trust vote in Parliament on July 20.

Congress leader Mallikarjun Kharge in its plea said Sitharaman's assertions "on the floor of this House were absolutely false" and she had misled not just the members of the House but "the entire nation".

"The 2008 Agreement does not state that 'Commercial Costs' of Procurement of Defence Deals cannot be revealed. Article 1 of the 2008 agreement clearly defined 'classified information and material' as "material which requires protection...in the interest of the national security...". It is not specific to Rafale jet fighters and nowhere prohibits the disclosure of purchase price to the Parliament," he said.

Referring to Modi, he said the Prime Minister's claim on transparency in the Rafale agreement is "factually incorrect, untrue and deliberately made with the intention to mislead the House".

"The Prime Minister's claim on transparency in the agreement is factually incorrect, untrue and deliberately made with the intention to mislead the house," he added.