Let Parliament function: Pranab

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Ruling out a joint parliamentary committee (JPC) probe into the 2G spectrum scam, finance minister Pranab Mukherjee on Saturday appealed to the Opposition parties to let Parliament function so that a debate on the issue could take place.
“I have requested them (the opposition) to come back to the House and let the whole issue be debated in Parliament. Let them say whatever they want to say on the floor of the house and the government will respond,” he told reporters here.
“As soon as the CAG (on the 2G spectrum) report came, the matter was referred to PAC. It is a permanent JPC having members from both Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha. Therefore, PAC itself is the JPC. I don’t understand why the JPC should be there,” he said.
Mr Mukherjee said it is the constitutional responsibility of the PAC to examine the report of the CAG. He said side by side all relevant inquiries were going on.
On the government’s effort to end the stalemate in Parliament, Mr Mukherjee, the leader of the Lok Sabha, said the Speaker had called a meeting of all parties and there were several formal and informal discussions.
Mr Mukherjee said, “We have requested the Opposition leaders that we have already started investigation in respect of all matters of concern.”
“Even at the last moment I am appealing to them (the Opposition) to come back to the house,” he added.
In New Delhi, the BJP reacted to Mr Mukherjee’s statement, saying the government has been adamant about its stand against the JPC despite the Opposition making it clear why it was demanding such a probe. “That (opposition to JPC) has been the single-worded appeal of the Congress. Who is responsible for the 2G scam, who sold 2G spectrum — a valuable asset — in 2007 at 2000 prices, and who committed the omissions and commissions? Unless there is a JPC these cannot be answered,” BJP spokesperson Nirmala Sitharaman said.
She said senior BJP leader L.K. Advani had already stated why the Opposition was demanding a JPC.