New Delhi, Sep 24: Stepping up his attack on the Prime Minister Narendra Modi over Rafale jet fighter deal, Congress president Rahul Gandhi on Monday called him 'Commander In Thief'. Rahul Gandhi shared a video featuring editor of Mediapart, a French media house that quoted France's former president Francois Hollande as saying the Indian government 'proposed' Anil Ambani's Reliance Defence as Rafale manufacturer Dassault Aviation's Indian partner.

"The sad truth about India's Commander in Thief," the Congress leader tweeted, attaching the video. Sepaking to media in his parliamentary constituency, Gandhi said PM Modi must calrify on Rafale deal. "France's former president (Hollande) has called Narendra Modi a thief. Now, Modi ji has to clarify why is he (Hollande) calling him a thief," he said. Earlier today, Gandhi called Union Finance Minister Arun Jaitley a liar and spelled his name as 'Jetlie'. Arun Jaitley Defends Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Rafale Deal, Says Rahul Gandhi is in 'Revenge Mode'.

Meanwhile, the Congress moved the Central Vigilance Commission (CVC) seeking a probe and FIR as well as seizure of relevant documents pertaining to the deal which it claimed caused loss to the exchequer. An 11-member delegation met CVC KV Chowdary and submitted a memorandum asserting that the deal announced by PM Modi was at an "escalated price of about 300 per cent" and done in violation of the Defence Procurement Policy (DPP).

Gandhi has been targeting PM Modi and his government over the Rafale deal with France and asking why a 70-year-old defence public sector company Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd (HAL) was ignored for manufacturing the fighter jet. He questioned how the cost of one aircraft, which was Rs 540 crore when the UPA government had signed the deal, rose to thrice its value to Rs 1,600 crore under the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)-led government at the Centre.

A political storm erupted over former French President Francois Hollande's remarks that the Modi government asked them to chose a private firm (Anil Ambani's Reliance Defence) as offset partner in the Rafale deal.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Sep 24, 2018 05:03 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).