Modi government to keep AgustaWestland rotors running

NEW DELHI: BJP-led NDA plans to keep the Agusta issue alive in Parliament. Senior leaders have given notices for discussions in both the Houses and a reply by defence minister Manohar Parrikar in the coming days. Fresh revelations rocked the Rajya Sabha on Wednesday as nominated member and BJP leader Subramanian Swamy alleged Congress chief Sonia Gandhi had been named in a case on the matter, leading to an uproar from the main opposition that trooped into the Well and forced two adjournments.

Parliamentary affairs minister Rajiv Pratap Rudy later told reporters that three BJP MPs — Anurag Thakur, Meenakshi Lekhi and Om Birla — have given notices for Calling Attention Motion on the issue. Party MP Bhupendra Yadav has already given a similar notice in the Rajya Sabha. “We will have to wait for the defence minister to give a reply on the debate and this will be done soon,” Rudy said.

Earlier in the day, minutes after the Rajya Sabha met for the day, the Leader of the Opposition, Ghulam Nabi Azad, referred to a news report that PM Modi had met his Italian counterpart on the sidelines of a UN meeting in September 2015 where he offered to free the Italian marines, facing charges of killing Indian fishermen, if that country shared information about Gandhi. Leader of the House Arun Jaitley termed the report as “false and untrue in its entirety”. Jaitley informed the Rajya Sabha that the Agusta case investigation is “at an advanced stage”.

“There is alleged to have been a bribe payment. The bribe-giver has been convicted. The identity of the bribetaker has to be established.” While the House proceedings were in order till then, there was an uproar soon after deputy chairman PJ Kurien called Swamy to speak. Swamy said: “It was touching to see the Leader of the Opposition relying on Mr Michel for what he said orally… But the High Court of Italy has recorded a letter written by Mr Michel stating that Sonia Gandhi is the main…” An infuriated Congress was on its feet with members raising slogans against Swamy and walking into the. The Rajya Sabha was adjourned twice.