NEW DELHI: The Supreme Court on Wednesday ruled that the defence ministry files objected to by the Centre are admissible evidence. The apex court said that Rafale review petitions will be heard on merit.The petitions were filed by the Yashwant Sinha, Arun Shourie and Prashant Bhushan.
A bench comprising CJI Gogoi, Justice Sanjay Kishan Kaul and Justice Joseph had on March 14 reserved its order on the “preliminary issue and the claim of privilege by the government”.
The government, aborting earlier deal to acquire 126 fighter jets, opted for 36 Rafale jets in ready-to-fly condition. Of the 126 jets in the earlier deal, most were to be manufactured at the Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd (HAL).
The government had alleged that these documents widely published in the media had been purloined or stolen and hence were not to be admitted as evidence in the court proceedings.
The government in its argument had insisted that the documents on which the case rests were “stolen” and could not be used in a court of law.
The judgment makes it clear that during the hearing of the review petition the bench will look into not only the question of pricing of the jet but also selection of Indian offset partner of Dassault which manufactures Rafale.
