Don't play political football over Scorpene leak, says expert

New Delhi, Aug. 25 (ANI): A defence expert has said that there is no need to indulge in a game of "political football" with regard to the alleged leak of secret documents that detailed capabilities and characteristics of the Indian Navy's six Scorpene submarines. Ranjit Rai said any inquiry into the matter must be taken very seriously in the interest of national security. Rai told ANI, "Every country looks for intelligence to find out the detail. The Indian Navy is on the rise and we have nuclear enemies on our neighbourhood. They would very much like to know the details of the Scorpene and they would therefore protect themselves because the Scorpene is a vehicle of war, it's the most efficient vehicle of war in peace time, it can do intelligence and trains your navy to fight submarine." Acknowledging that the leak would help the enemy or any other country to protect itself whenever it goes to sea, he, however, said that the Indian Navy is capable of changing the submarine's parameters. "The submarine is designed with great effort for stability, diving and performance and speed. But what is inside the submarine with which it fights, the sceptics command, control, the radar, the electronic warfare, the sonar and all frequencies, most of them are in the (leaked) documents; that is very dangerous and serious. This will help the enemy or any other country to protect itself whenever it goes to sea," he said. "The Navy will go through it, an enquiry has been ordered by the defence minister and may be at some cost, we may have to change those parameters which I think the Indian Navy is quite capable of doing," he added. According to The Australian, the leak details the entire secret combat capability of the six Scorpene-class submarines that French shipbuilder DCNS has designed for the Indian Navy. Meanwhile, DCNS said that the matter is being thoroughly investigated by the proper French national authorities for defence security. "DCNS has been made aware of articles published in the Australian press related to the leakage of sensitive data about the Indian Scorpenes. This is a serious matter that is being thoroughly investigated by the proper French national authorities for defense security," the company said in a statement. As per reports, the leak includes details of the submarine's underwater sensors, above-water sensors, combat management system, torpedo launch system and specifications, communications system and navigation systems. (ANI)