2G spectrum scam: Congress picks holes in CAG report

As parliament remained stalled for an eighth straight day on the issue of setting up a joint parliamentary committee (JPC) to probe various scams, including 2G spectrum, and the opposition demanded a statement from prime minister Manmohan Singh, parliamentary affairs minister Pawan Kumar Bansal launched a counter-attack.

“Where have they given anyone the opportunity to speak. Before the speaker comes to the House, they [opposition members] come to the floor of the House,” he said.

Bansal said the government was willing to discuss every issue, but for that the opposition had to allow parliament to function normally.

Congress maintained the observations of the Supreme Court questioning the prime minister’s 11-month silence on the 2G spectrum scam did not amount to strictures against his office.

The party also picked holes in the comptroller and auditor general’s (CAG’s) report on the basis of which the opposition has launched an all-out attack on the government. “CAG has based its assessment of losses in 2G spectrum allocation on an offer submitted by a company that defaulted,” spokesperson Manish Tewari said.

“The opposition keeps insisting on a JPC without even having a discussion
on issues that have been highlighted by CAG. Let the issues be debated before we come to a conclusion whether a JPC should probe the matter, or a public accounts committee or CBI,” he said.

Meanwhile, the high-powered Congress core committee met under the chairmanship of president Sonia Gandhi in Delhi on Thursday and is reported to have discussed the issue at length.