Rafale row: After Rahul Gandhi calls PM Modi 'corrupt', BJP launches blistering counter attack

Rafale row Rahul Gandhi PM Modi — BJP spokesperson Sambit Swaraj called Rahul Gandhi a 'clown prince' (Photo/IndiaTV)

Hours after Rahul Gandhi raised questions over Defence Minister Nirmala Sitharaman's France visit and called PM Modi a 'corrupt man', the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) launched a blistering attack on the Congress president, saying he was creating confusion and spreading lies over Rafale deal.

Speaking to reporters during a press conference, BJP spokesperson Sambit Patra called Rahul Gandhi a 'clown prince' and dared the Congress to move court if they have any evidence of corruption in the Rafale fighter jet deal.

"The clown prince held a press conference on the basis of lie, the country knows he is creating confusion. Air Force Chief called Rafale as a gamechanger, now who is to be believed the Air Force Chief or Rahul Gandhi. Even the Supreme Court rejected the plea filed on the behest of Congress," Patra said.

Earlier in the day, Rahul Gandhi demanded an investigation against Prime Minister Narendra Modi on his role in the Rafale deal, alleging that he was a "corrupt man" who helped Anil Ambani pocket Rs 30,000 crore in the purchase of 36 aircraft.

Gandhi's demand for a probe came a day after a report in French publication that said Dassault Aviation, the manufacturer of Rafale, had to choose Ambani's firm Reliance Defence as its offsets partner in India as a trade-off for getting the deal.

The Congress president did not provide any evidence to back his allegations against the prime minister.

The government has been insisting it had no role in Dassault's choice of Reliance Defence.

The Congress president also described Defence Minister Nirmala Sitharaman's three-day trip to France from Thursday as part of a "huge cover-up" by the government on the Rafale deal.