NEW DELHI – Coping with barbs being hurled at the BJP-led Indiangovernment after Pakistan shot down its intruding jets, Prime MinisterNarendra Modi faced another setback when the Supreme Court of India wastold that documents on the Rafale deal were stolen.

Indian opposition leaders have been alleging major corruption in the $8.7billion deal for the purchase of 36 fighter jet for the Indian Air Forcethat was signed in 2016.

A number of petitions have been filed in the apex court regardingprocurement of 36 Rafale fighters from French manufacturer DassaultAviation, in which the Supreme Court of India had given the Modi governmenta certificate of exoneration.

Advocate Prashant Bhushan, one of the petitioners in the case, has allegedthat the government lied in court about the Rafale deal and should faceperjury charges.

Attorney General Venugopal argued in court that documents on the Rafaledeal relied upon by petitioners were marked ‘secret’ and ‘classified’,therefore they are in violation of the Official Secrets Act. He furtherinformed that the documents had gone missing from the Defence Ministry along time ago and that an investigation is pending.

The petitioners have asked for a review after the Supreme Court said inDecember that there was no reason to doubt the decision-making process amidCongress allegations of corruption in the 2016 jet deal. The top courtdismissed petitions alleging that the government had gone for an overpriceddeal to help Anil Ambani’s company bag an offset contract with jet-makerDassault.