The Congress party's allegations of fraud in the Rafale aircraft deal had no basis and so were rejected by the Supreme Court and the Comptroller Auditor General, said Prime Minister Narendra Modi in an interview to News18.

"Congress has been destroyed by defence scams. So they try to make the same allegations against all governments. During the Vajpayee government, they tried to trap George Fernandes in the coffin scam. It turned out to be lies. Now they are trying to similarly trap me," said Modi to Rahul Joshi, Editor-in-Chief.

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Congress has stopped using the Rafale allegations now as they were advised by their political aids that these lies will not work in the elections, added Modi. Rahul Gandhi is using false allegations because "he wanted to wash the Bofors stain on his father," said Modi. "Some neutral journalists also raised the issue of the money trail in Bofors. We are asking for proof to be shown in public but they are not giving any."

Narendra Modi asserted that no one can accuse him of corruption and he will perform his duty as "chowkidar" (guard) of India and not let anyone steal the country's wealth. 'Even today I say I am the chowkidar and I will not let anyone steal. And if someone does, I am strengthening the law and taking strong action."

PM Modi claimed that his government has successfully created an environment of honesty in India.

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To read all the stories from the interview, click here.

(The full interview will be aired today at 7pm and 10pm on CNN-News18, News18 India, CNBC TV18 and other News18 regional channels. Also, catch the live interview at 7 PM here: PM Narendra Modi Interview)

First Published:Apr 9, 2019 10:55 AM IST