Sonia Gandhi’s lioness: Jyotiraditya Scindia

Aditi Tandon

Tribune News Service

New Delhi, May 6

Before walking out of the Lok Sabha in the super heated AgustaWestland VVIP chopper deal debate on Friday, the Congress mounted a dramatic defence for party chief Sonia Gandhi, whom the BJP Government is mentioning for alleged role in the multi-crore deal.

"You are targeting Sonia Gandhi because you are afraid of her. She's a lioness. If you mess with her you'll be bruised, " Congress speaker Jyotiraditya Scindia said while defending Gandhi and her political adviser Ahmed Patel in the matter.

Congress fielded its young chief whip for a job that its senior-most leaders had done recently in Rajya Sabha with Ahmed Patel speaking for himself. But in Lok Sabha, Sonia and Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi chose to let Scindia to the talking.

The crux of Congress defence was that the BJP was defaming the Gandhis on the basis of an unsigned note by a deal middleman, where it has been mentioned that the "Italian High Commissioner to India should target Gandhi and her advisers for the issue".

"Even the judge who recently convicted two bribe takers in the issue said there was no evidence against Sonia Gandhi and that she has been mentioned in the matter only as someone who will fly in the VVIP chopper in question. Even AP, which BJP is describing as Ahmed Patel, has been so mentioned in unsigned noting based on Internet search for what AP stands for. You should be ashamed of targeting our leaders based on such unsubstantiated noting, " Scindia said in a debate that saw Congress members clash repeatedly with Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar and member Anurag Thakur on whose calling attention notice the discussion was undertaken.

Congress attempted to allege that BJP government did nothing much to punish guilty in the case and was only interested in making political capital.

Scindia questioned Parrikar on why the ruling dispensation is allowing AgustaWestland's parent firm in sub contracts in India when Agusta stands blacklisted from July 2014. He further asked why BJP opposed a JPC probe in the case when the then UPA government had offered one.

The party however did not wait to get responses from Parrikar, who later answered every query Scindia raised, asking him of it would have been wise to compromise national security by banning Finmeccanica from supplying critical sub parts and components for naval ships and other defence equipment.

"We've put on hold all major defence deals with AgustaWestland but can't possibly stop its parent company from supplying bullets for our ships. Should I stop this supply to the detriment of national security, " Parrikar asked Congress which demanded a Supreme Court monitored probe in the case before walking put of LS Sonia and Rahul led the walkout.