NEW DELHI: A day after a dramatic twist in the probe in AugustaWestland VVIP helicopter deal, with alleged middleman Christian Michel reportedly taking names of “Mrs Gandhi” and “big man R”, the Congress lashed out at the government and said the Enforcement Directorate (ED) has become “embarrassing disaster”. The BJP hit back, accusing the Opposition party of defending the arrested middleman.
“The Congress is fully committed to probing Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his government’s collusion with AgustaWestland if the party comes to power in 2019. After the BJP came to power at the Centre, the Defence Ministry lifted the ban on AgustaWestland imposed during the UPA rule. It was even allowed to bid for 100 naval utility helicopters,” Congress spokesperson Randeep Singh Surjewala said on Sunday.
The Congress leader said that “under Modi, the ED has become an embarrassing disaster”. He alleged that the government was putting pressure on Michel to make “false” statements against the Gandhi family. The Congress challenged the government to place any evidence it has against the party’s top leadership.
“They are using Michel as a sounding board to defend their own wrongdoings and misdeeds,” alleged Surjewala.
BJP spokesperson Sudhanshu Trivedi slammed the Congress for giving political colour to the ED probe. “Why does the name of a Gandhi family member crop up whenever a foreigner is caught for corruption?” asked Trivedi.