New Delhi: Parliament has been paralysed by the alleged AgustaWestland helicopter scam with the treasury and opposition benches trading charges. Congress president Sonia Gandhi was in the line of fire as Bharatiya Janata Party(BJP) members targeted her both inside and outside Parliament.
BJP Rajya Sabha MP Subramanian Swamy took Sonia's name during a discussion which led to a huge uproar and protest by Congress MPs following which the remarks were expunged from the records.
Outside Parliament, Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar claimed that the Gandhi family is involved in the AgustaWestland chopper scam. "It is clear that Gandhi family is involved in AgustaWestland deal. Truth should come out. It involved so many VIP, let me put it before Parliament first," the Defence Minister said.
But Sonia was quick to react and rejected all the charges. "I have nothing to hide. Let them take my name," she said.
"Where are the proofs. They are lying. They are part of a strategy of character assassination which we have known these people indulge in," Sonia said.
Referring to the Modi government, she asked what has it been doing over the last two years.
"The government is there for the last 2 years. What are they doing? Inquiry is there, why don't they complete it? Complete it as soon as possible, impartially," she added.
Gandhi's political secretary and senior Congress leader Ahmed Patel also rubbished the allegations against him and the party as "absolutely baseless."
"This government, when they are saying all these things outside and inside the Parliament, why can't they investigate," Patel said.
Top BJP leaders had met on Tuesday to chalk out a strategy following reports that an Italian court, which has convicted AgustaWestland chief Giuseppe Orsi, has described how the firm paid bribes to certain Congress leaders to bag the Rs 3,600 crore deal.
Congress Spokesperson Randeep Surjewala, however, hit back, saying that if anybody needs to answer questions on the matter it is the Narendra Modi government.
He said the UPA government had included an integrity clause as per which the contract for purchase of helicopters from AgustaWestland was cancelled, the guarantee forfeited and process initiated for recovery of money.
The UPA government had signed a deal with AgustaWestland for purchase of 12 helicopters to ferry VVIPs but it was scrapped after reports appeared in Italy that the firm had paid kickbacks to Indian officials to clinch the deal.
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