In the wake of the Supreme Court allowing Italian marine Salvatore Girone to go home, Congress today came down hard on the Modi government accusing it of "cutting an underhand deal to malign the party and its leadership" on the AgustaWestland issue.
At a press conference when asked to comment on the court order in the case, party leader Kapil Sibal said that Congress "knows" that Prime Minister Narendra Modi has met his Italian counterpart though the government has denied any such meeting.
Party's chief spokesman Randeep Surjewala said the stand taken by the Modi government today is a great injustice to the family of deceased fishermen of Kerala.
"The fisherman community and the common citizens of India are outraged by this insensitive and unjust decision of the Modi government."
He said it reaffirmed and established prima facie the allegations that Prime Minister was "cutting an underhand deal to malign the Congress leadership and party" in the AgustaWestland issue.
Earlier this month, AICC had alleged that Modi government "entered into a conspiracy" to "falsely accuse" the party leadership in the AgustaWestland chopper case and made a "weak defence" in the Italian marines case as "quid pro quo".
"Recent order of the Permanent Court of Arbitration in The Hague confirms the claim that Modi government has entered into a conspiracy to falsely accuse Congress leadership in AgustaWestland case in return for a weak defence in Italian marines case," party spokesman Jyotiraditya Scindia had said about three weeks ago.
Earlier in the day, the Supreme Court relaxed the bail conditions of Girone, one of the two Italian marines accused of killing two fishermen off Kerala coast in 2012, and allowed him to go to his country till an International Arbitral Tribunal decides the jurisdictional issue between India and Italy.
The other marine Massimiliano Latorre is already in Italy on health grounds and his stay there was recently extended by the apex court till September 30.
