Rahul Gandhi’s fresh salvo on Anil Ambani after Ericsson seeks his detention

Following a petition filed by Swedish company Ericsson sought to have Reliance Communications’ chairman Anil Ambani detained over unpaid dues, Congress president Rahul Gandhi renewed his question whether the Prime Minister had weakened national security by allowing the younger Ambani to partner with French company Dassault in the Rafale deal.

On Friday, the Congress President took to Twitter and demanded that “in addition to corruption, the PM should be investigated for weakening national security by giving the Rafale contract to his friend and international debt master, Anil Ambani.”

During a debate in the Lok Sabha on Wednesday, the Congress president had charged that the PM who was “hiding in his room” had obliged his ‘friend’ Anil Ambani in the Rafale deal. He had described Anil Ambani to be a ‘failed businessman’.

The statement comes at a time when the ongoing legal battle between Ericsson and Reliance Communications over unpaid dues has turned ugly. Reliance Communication had undertaken to pay ₹550 Crore to Ericsson by September last year. The Supreme Court had allowed an extension and allowed Ambani to pay the dues by the middle of December.

In a second contempt petition, Ericsson has charged Ambani of committing contempt of court and prayed that he be detained and forbidden from travelling abroad till he pays up, reported The Economic Times.

“The fresh application was filed because RCom and others did not comply with the SC order. We have been waiting for payments for a long time and their default is contempt of court,” senior advocate Anil Kher representing Ericsson, has been quoted as saying. “Under Contempt of Court Act, if found guilty, this could lead to civil imprisonment, which means jail up to six months.”

Last month, Reliance Communications had told the apex court that it could not pay Ericsson Rs 550 crore by the December 15 deadline as the government had not cleared its spectrum sale to Reliance Jio Infocomm. It is believed that the Anil Ambani-owned company could be pushed into insolvency once again.

Previously, Reliance Communication and Ericsson had on May 30 settled the debt of ₹1,150 crore for ₹550 crore which was to be paid within 120 days, by September 30.

Meanwhile, Reliance Communications Ltd. filed a second contempt plea against the Department of Telecommunications for not giving its approval for the sale of its spectrum to Reliance Jio Infocomm Ltd.

In the last hearing on December 14, the department had agreed to issue a no-objection certificate within two days. The Supreme Court will hear Reliance Communication’s petition on January 7.

Earlier on Thursday, the Supreme Court said it will hear on Monday the two contempt petitions, one filed by Reliance Communications against the department of telecommunications and the other by Ericsson India against Reliance Communication’s chairman Anil Ambani.