Rahul attacks PM Modi on Rafale; alleges he 'sold' IAF

Launching a fresh attack on Prime Minister Narendra Modi over the Rafale jet deal, Congress president Rahul Gandhi Wednesday alleged that he "sold" the Indian Air Force and "stole" opportunities of the youth by giving away Rs 30,000 crore to his "friend" and businessman Anil Ambani.

The government, as well as Ambani, have strongly denied any wrongdoing in the Rafale deal.

Addressing the concluding session of the Youth Congress nationwide public outreach campaign 'Yuva Kranti Yatra', Gandhi said no one will be able to suppress the truth about the "Rafale scam" and it will come out finally.

"The entire country knows that Mr Modi stole opportunities of the youth to give Rs 30,000 crore to Anil Ambani. No one can suppress the truth about Rafale, it will come out itself," he said.

"You have sold the Indian Air Force," he alleged, targeting Modi over the Rafale deal.

He said the prime minister spoke for one and a half hours in Parliament but when asked questions on Rafale, he could not look in the eye and kept looking elsewhere.

"The prime minister is trying to hide the truth," Gandhi also alleged.

"You (Modi) cannot sleep in the night. When you sleep, you see the picture of Anil Ambani, you see the picture of Rafale jet, you see the picture of IAF martyrs... this is happening due to the Congress and Youth Congress workers who have shown you the truth. The entire country knows that you have played with the future of the youth," he alleged.

Gandhi also said the Congress will not be on the backfoot and will instead play on the front foot. "Modi has to face the public in 2019," he said.

Attacking Modi, he said, "The prime minister has worked on dividing the country, burnt the Northeast, Kashmir, made people fight in Haryana, Maharashtra, Karnataka and Kerala."

"2014 taught us a lesson that we should not be arrogant and have humility... We did that and now the atmosphere is changing," he said.

According to Gandhi, the Congress has taken a historic step and decided on giving people the right to minimum income. "All poor people will get benefit directly into their accounts and there will be no middlemen."

He also said the Congress is "not against industrialists but against crony capitalists like Modi's friends", he said.