Congress president Rahul Gandhi on Thursday stepped up his attack on Prime Minister Narendra Modi over removal of CBI chief Alok Verma, claiming PM Modi post-midnight decision as a panic reaction to the agency’s move to probe the Rafale fighter jet deal.

“The question is why was he removed at 2 am... The main reason is that CBI was going to begin investigation in role of Prime Minister in Rafale and the corruption by Prime Minister in the Rafale deal,” he said.