AAP lawmaker Sanjay Singh moves SC seeking review of Rafale verdict that dismissed all petitions challenging deal

New Delhi: Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) lawmaker Sanjay Singh on Monday moved the Supreme Court, seeking a review of the verdict by which several pleas challenging the deal for procurement of Rafale fighter jets were dismissed. [caption id=“attachment_2357550” align=“alignleft” width=“380”] File image of AAP leader Sanjay Singh. Facebook[/caption] A bench, headed by Chief Justice of India Ranjan Gogoi, had on 14 December, dismissed as many as four petitions challenging the deal and had said that there was no occasion to “really doubt the decision making process” that warranted setting aside of the contract. “Our country cannot afford to be unprepared when it comes to fighter aircrafts,” Gogoi observed. The bench also said that the country’s defence preparedness needs to be looked after. The bench ruled out a probe into the details of the Rafale deal, and asserted that it was not a case of “commercial favouritism”. The Chief Justice had also said, “It’s not a case of commercial favouritism as offset doesn’t require to be chosen by Indian government. The perception of individuals can’t be a subject matter of initiating inquiry.” Separate pleas were filed by Singh, lawyer ML Sharma, Vineet Dhanda, former BJP leaders Arun Shourie and Yashwant Sinha and activist-lawyer Prashant Bhushan against the deal. Singh, a Rajya Sabha lawmaker of AAP, has filed the review plea through lawyers Dheeraj Kumar Singh and Mrinal Kumar.