‘Affidavit never gave clean chit to Fernandes’

The minister claimed the 21-page document filed before the Court had no such reference and, in fact, there was a mention of five cases being transferred to the CBI.

Replying to a debate on the functioning of the Defence Ministry in the Rajya Sabha, Mukherjee said the UPA was in favour of ‘‘discontinuing this climate (of witch-hunting of politicians for Defence deals)’’. He said former prime minister Rajiv Gandhi, whose regime had purchased one of the best guns from the Bofors company for the country, was maligned for this even after his death.

‘‘In the 1980s, a bright young man was criticised for going in for Bofors guns which had proved to be the best artillery guns to counter threats against India,’’ he said.

‘‘He was not spared even after his death. He was put in a case of corruption where there was not even an iota of evidence. His name was put in the chargesheet even after his death,’’ Mukherjee claimed, saying the Government wanted to end this. He, however, said in spite of this policy, the guilty would be punished in the alleged pay-offs in the deal for purchase of rifles from Denel during the NDA rule.