New Delhi, Nov 11 (IANS) The government Thursday ruled out a joint parliamentary committee (JPC) probe into the controversial 2G spectrum allotment that is said to have caused a loss of over Rs.1.70 lakh crore to the national exchequer.
Rejecting the opposition demands, Parliamentary Affairs Minister Pawan Kumar Bansal said ‘there is no need for a JPC inquiry’ as a report by the Comptroller and Auditor General on the issue would be tabled in parliament soon.
The CAG report was submitted to the government Wednesday and is believed to have indicted Communication and Information Technology Minister A. Raja, who allegedly sold 2G spectrum in 2008 at lower prices than the market rates causing a loss of Rs.1.76 lakh crore to the government.
‘The report will become the property of parliament and will be studied by the Public Accounts Committee (PAC) of parliament to recommend any action if needed,’ Bansal told reporters.
He said the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) demand for a JPC probe was ‘uncalled for because the PAC is headed by none other than their Murli Manohar Joshi’.
‘They (BJP members) are disrupting the house because they know the PAC will find no substance to target Raja in the CAG report,’ he said, adding that the minister had done nothing wrong.
‘He has violated no rules,’ Bansal said.
Bansal said graft was an ‘issue of concern for all and the Congress has set examples for zero tolerance to corruption’.
‘But the BJP members are in an organised manner disrupting the house and wasting time.’
