PMO monitoring Rafale deal does not tantamount to parallel negotiations: Centre tells SC

New Delhi, May 04: The Centre has filed a fresh affidavit in the Supreme Court stating that the order that gave the government a clean chit in the Rafale case should not be re-looked into or reviewed.

The Centre also said that the Prime Minister's Office monitoring the Rafale deal does not tantamount to parallel negotiations.

The order should not be reviewed based on some stolen documents revealing incomplete file noting, the affidavit also said. The Centre said that the all files relating to the procurement of the 36 fully loaded Rafale jets were submitted to the CAG, which after a thorough audit has returned a finding that the price is 2.86 per cent cheaper that the proposed deal during the UPA government.

The Centre said that the review petitioners led by Prashant Bhushan are relying on subsequent information, which are nothing but unsubstantiated media report and part of internal file noting deliberately projected in a selective manner. This cannot be the basis of the review, the Centre also said.

Further it said that the once the court has held that the perceptions of individuals cannot be the basis of a fishing and roving inquiry by this Court. There is no basis for a fishing and roving inquiry by the CBI.

Referring to the internal secret document relies on by Bhushan while filing the review, the Centre said that different opinions and experts expressed during discussions does not reflect the majority view in the discussions.

The Centre said that the document annexed with the review petition is an internal file noting from the secret file of the Ministry of Defence wherein various views and legal advise rendered by different agencies at different stages of the procurement process have been reflected and recorded.

It is submitted that these are incomplete file notings containing views expressed by various functionaries at different times and not the final decision of the competent authority of the Union Government, the Centre also said.