Murli Manohar Joshi to submit PAC report to Lok Sabha Speaker

[1]

Public Accounts Committee (PAC) chairman Murli Manohar Joshi will submit a copy of the controversial 2G report to Lok Sabha Speaker Meira Kumar on Saturday, with the Congress and the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) accusing him of having 'malafide intention' of destabilising the government.

According to reports, Joshi will submit a copy of the report to Lok Sabha Speaker Meira Kumar with a note from the Lok Sabha Secretariat that it was not 'outsourced' as alleged by Congress.

The ruling Congress Party had on Thursday demanded an explanation from Joshi over leakage of the draft report.

"The fact is if there are lies and if a draft report is leaked, the Chairman of the committee should explain how it happened? We are demanding from him to explain first how this happened; he has not explained," said Congress spokesperson Jayanthi Natarajan.

Joshi on Thursday walked out of a meeting where his report on the 2G scam was defeated by one vote.

Eleven of the 21 members of the Public Accounts Committee (PAC) including SP and BSP members, submitted signed voting slips rejecting the report prepared by Joshi.

The PAC in its report on Wednesday indicted former Telecom Minister A. Raja for misleading the Prime Minister, Dr. Manmohan Singh, in 2008.

According to the PAC report, the PMO could have intervened faster in objections presented on A. Raja's 'First Come First Serve Policy'.

The draft also says that Raja misled Dr. Manmohan Singh to fulfill his 'nefarious designs' leading to a staggering loss of revenue.

The draft further adds that the Prime Minister was aware of the advice given by the Law Ministry, which was contrary to the view of the Telecom Ministry.

The report is also critical of Union Home Minister P. Chidambaram, who was then Finance Minister.

According to the PAC report: "We are shocked and dismayed that instead of initiating stringent action against all those responsible for the loss, the Finance Minister in his note asked the Prime Minister to close the matter."