DCNS initially suggested the leak might be at the Indian end, but the data leaked also relates to the French firm’s plans to sell frigates to Chile and an amphibious ship to Russian Federation, the report said.
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The Congress party on Thursday described Manohar Parrikar as India’s “most incompetent and careless” defence minister, and alleged that he is guilty of a facilitating a cover-up in the leak of secret details related to the six Scorpene submarines.
Reacting to reports of the massive data leak, he added, “It needs to be verified if the leaked documents are authentic”.
The DCNS website says the new ship would be “the recipient of France’s most sensitive and protected submarine technology and will be the most lethal conventional submarine ever contemplated”.
The submarines, designed by French naval contractor DCNS, are being built at a state-run shipyard in Mumbai.
In the wake of the discovery that a 22,400-page document about the Scorpène-class submarine (for which India has already paid French shipbuilder DCSN around $3.45 billion) was leaked, the Indian military establishment responded calmly.
India has a fleet of 13 ageing submarines, only half of which are operational at any time, opening up a major gap with China which is expanding its maritime presence in the Indian Ocean.
The first India-built submarine is expected to go into service by the end of the year.
Defence experts had yesterday raised concerns over the leak, irrespective of the leak compromising Indian security or not.
“Therefore, I don’t see any reason to worry because of the allegation of data leak that was reported because it does not affect our operations or the security of TLDM’s submarines”, Mohd Johari told Malay Mail Online, referring to the Royal Malaysian Navy.
DCNS said in a statement that the document theft was limited only to the Scorpene model and not the Barracuda class. “We will find out what has happened”.
Asked if the leak could affect other contracts, a company spokeswoman said it had come against a hard commercial backdrop and that corporate espionage could be to blame. The leaking will cause to trigger off countries that operate a variant of the Scorpene, or have ordered the submarine, including Malaysia, Chile and Brazil, reported The Australian newspaper.
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The leaked documents cover the Scorpene-class model and do not contain any details of the vessel now being designed for the Australian fleet.
