NEW DELHI: Prime Minister
Narendra Modi launched a direct attack on the Congress leadership on Friday, saying the party and corruption were “inseparable partners” and alleged involvement of Congress’s first “family” in the Agusta-Westland chopper scam.
Addressing a rally in
Dehradun
, Modi pointed out that alleged
AgustaWestland
scam middleman Christian Michel had been singing to his interrogators. “One was ‘AP’ and the other was ‘Fam’. ‘AP’ stands for
Ahmed Patel and Fam stands for family. Have you heard of Ahmed Patel? Which family is he close to?” Modi asked the crowd.
“Congress and corruption are inseparable partners. Wherever the party comes to power, corruption accelerates while development is put on ventilator,” Modi said, addressing a crowd of over 25,000 in Dehradun.
Modi’s broadside at Congress and the Gandhis came after the
Enforcement Directorate claimed in a supplementary chargesheet that Michel had said “AP” stands for senior Congress leader Ahmed Patel and the abbreviation “Fam” was for family. The chargesheet has details on lobbying for the VVIP chopper deal and references to a leader “who will be PM” and political conduits.