BJP MP: wrote to Antony on Tatra truck deal in 2008

The BJP on Monday said its Jabalpur MP Rakesh Singh had written to defence minister AK Antony in May 2008, complaining against the Tatra truck deal.

The BJP on Monday said its Jabalpur MP Rakesh Singh had written to defence minister AK Antony in May 2008, complaining against the Tatra truck deal.

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The BJP MP had pointed out that Tatra trucks, priced at Rs 65 lakh, were being bought from Tatra though the vehicle factory at Jabalpur was capable of manufacturing and selling trucks of a "better technology" for just Rs 30 lakh.

"It’s wrong to say that Antony didn’t know about the Rs 3000-crore scam," Rakesh Singh told journalists here.

"He should resign. If he were actually honest, as the Congress says, why did he allow this scam to happen despite having knowledge about it?"

BJP spokesperson Prakash Javadekar said, "What prompted Antony to become inactive on this issue? At whose behest were the sudden changes in procurement criteria made. The government and the prime minister owe an explanation."

Singh said in the letter to Antony he had also complained against Ravi Rishi. "Rishi (promoter of Tatra) has been a negative catalyst in the recently-scrapped Eurocropter defence deal. His involvement and other nefarious events led to the same deal being retendered."

Singh claimed that the defence minister had replied to him saying, "I am having the matter looked into."

The BJP said the party MP had also raised the matter during the zero hour in the Lok Sabha in October 2008 and asked why nothing was done despite Antony’s assurance.

Javadekar summed up: "We are focusing on two key issues — the price of Tatra trucks was much higher than that of the Jabalpur factory vehicles, and that there was inaction on part of the union government though the BJP MP had complained about the deal in 2008."