Rafale: SC permits use of leaked documents, expels Center's objections

New Delhi, Apr 10 In a setback to the Center, the Supreme Court Wednesday permitted leaked documents to be depended upon by petitioners looking review of its Rafale judgement and expelled the administration's starter protests asserting "benefit" over them.

The Center had presented that privilege documents were secured by petitioners in an illegal manner and used to help their review petitions against the December 14, 2018 judgement of the apex court expelling all pleas challenging procurement of 36 Rafale fighter jets from France.

"We reject the fundamental objection raised by Union of India questioning the maintainability of the review petition," a seat involving Chief Justice Ranjan Gogoi and Justices S K Kaul and K M Joseph said.

The apex court said it will proceed with the hearing on the review petition based on new documents alluded by petitioners.

The CJI pronounced the verdict on his behalf and for Justice S K Kaul. The second concurrent judgment was pronounced by Justice K M Joseph, who said he concurred with the finish of the judgment composed by the CJI.

The chief justice said Justice Joseph agreed with the judgment delivered by him yet gave different reasoning.

The judgment clarifies that amid the becoming aware of the agreed the seat will investigate not just the subject of estimating of the fly yet in addition determination of Indian balance accomplice of Dassault which manufactures Rafale.

The apex court said review petitions against its December 14 verdict dismissing all petitions against procurement of Rafale jets will be settled on merits.

The apex court said it will fix a date for hearing review petitions.

Former union minister Arun Shourie, who is one of the review petitioners, said he was delighted by the consistent decision.

"We are delighted it is a consistent verdict dismissing Central government's peculiar argument on admissibility of documents. Centre's argument meant that no wrong can be done in the defence deal," Shourie said.

The other two petitioners are former union minister Yashwant Sinha and activist advocate Prashant Bhushan.

On March 14, the apex court had held decision on the starter complaints raised by the Center on acceptability of advantaged archives added by Sinha, Shourie and Bhushan in their survey appeal.

Classified documents were sourced by the media over the Rafale deal. Refering to inward reports of the Defence Ministry, the Hindu had detailed that the Defense Ministry had protested parallel arrangements by the legislature.

The Center had guaranteed benefit over reports relating to the Rafale fighter jet deal with France and said those records can't be considered in proof according to Section 123 of the Indian Evidence Act.

The Center had battled that nobody can deliver them in the court without the consent of the division worried as those archives are likewise ensured under the Official Secrets Act and their exposure is exempted under the Right to Information Act as per Section 8(1)(a).

A three-judge seat headed by Chief Justice Ranjan Gogoi had on December 14 rejected all Public Interest Litigations (PILs) against the arrangement among India and France for obtainment of 36 Rafale fighter planes, saying there was no occasion to "really doubt the decision making process" warranting putting aside of the contract.

The Rafale fighter is a twin-motor Medium Multi Role Combat Aircraft (MMRCA) fabricated by French aerospace company Dassault Aviation.