JAITLEY WARNS AGAINST ‘FAKE CAMPAIGNS’

NEW DELHI: The past two months have witnessed several “fake campaigns” and it is about time India and its institutions are protected from these “institution wreckers”, Union minister Arun Jaitley wrote in a Facebook post on Sunday.

Jaitley, who has just returned from the US after medical treatment, was referring to the Congress charges on irregularities in the Rafale fighter jet deal and the Centre alleged interference in the functioning of the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), among others.

In the post titled “Institutions Under Attack – The Latest Fabrication”, Jaitley claimed Congress president Rahul Gandhi’s speeches on Rafale were based on a personal hatred for the Prime Minister. “A failed student always hates the class topper.”

He said the Rafale deal not only strengthened the combat ability of the Indian Air Force but saved thousands of crores for the exchequer. “When its falsehood collapsed, its creators by producing half a document lost their full credibility. They forgot that truth always prevails,” he alleged.

He claimed the government did not interfere with any investigative function of the CBI or any other agency. The new emerging breed of “institution protectors” had two critical features — they criticised the government the maximum and simultaneously argued that free speech was in danger, Jaitley alleged.

He said the “fake campaigns” had failed to cut much ice.