WEB DESK / NEW DELHI
After rebuttle from Admiral L Ramdas, then Commander-in-chief of the Western Fleet who also on board at the time, the former Commanding Officer of INS Viraat, the aircraft carrier that former Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi allegedly used as a personal taxi service, has categorically denied the allegations made by Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Vice Admiral Vinod Pasricha, who commanded the Viraat in December, 1987, has denied reports that when the late Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi came on board the aircraft carrier, his friends and Italian mother-in-law were with him.
Rajiv Gandhi was visiting Lakshadweep on official work — a meeting of the Island Development Authority — not a family holiday. Accompanying him were his wife Sonia Gandhi, son Rahul Gandhi and a couple of IAS officers, Vice Admiral Pasricha told NDTV.
Denying that Amitabh Bachchan or Sonia Gandhi’s parents were on the warship, as claimed by the Prime Minister, Vice Admiral Pasricha said, “Other than the people I told you about, Rajiv Gandhi, Sonia Gandhi, his son and two IAS officials, there was no one else… This politicisation of the armed forces is wrong and unacceptable”.
”We travelled from Trivandrum, where we had taken them onboard on helicopter because Trivandrum does not have a jetty to berth Viraat. On the islands, he (Rajiv Gandhi) had to go for a number of meetings. He visited three islands by helicopter and I think two or three islands on the second day by helicopter,” Vice Admiral Pasricha said. ”He visited Bangaram island for about two hours on the morning of the second day (of his visit). And they had lunch there and then came back.”
Admiral L Ramdas, then Commander-in-chief of the Western Fleet who also on board at the time — also gave a similar version of the events.
In a statement, referring to the Prime Minister’s speech, he said it was presumably based on a report by Anita Pratap on India Today. “I would like to state unequivocally, that this was not the case,” he said in the statement.