Joshi had no right to submit PAC report to Speaker: Bansal

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Parliamentary Affairs Minister P. K. Bansal on Saturday said PAC Chairman Murli Manohar Joshi had no right to submit the draft report on the 2G scam to Lok Sabha Speaker Meira Kumar as it was 'rejected' by a majority of the Committee's members.

"Who has given him the right (to submit the report to the Speaker). I find it laughable... Dr. Joshi has gone on to submit that report which has no value legally or according to parliamentary traditions," the Union Minister and Congress MP from Chandigarh told reporters here.

"I pity him... the report has been rejected. Even if it is assumed that it has not been rejected, the fact remains it has not been passed by the majority," he said.

Bansal said to call the findings of the PAC a 'report' was wrong and an 'insult to democratic institutions'.

"This is the most preposterous thing to say. Where is the report? A draft becomes a report when the majority adopts it," he said.

Unfazed by the 'rejection' of the draft report on the 2G scam, Joshi on Saturday submitted it to Lok Sabha Speaker on the last day of his term as head of the Committee.

The controversial draft report that was sharply critical of the Prime Minister, PMO and others was 'rejected' by the majority of members in the 21 member Committee on Thursday during a chaotic meeting.

While Joshi, who is a senior BJP leader, claimed that he had 'adjourned' the meeting, Congress members alleged that he had walked out after which they 'elected' Rajya Sabha MP Saifuddin Soz to chair the meeting which 'rejected' the report.

11 members belonging to Congress, DMK and one each from SP and BSP 'voted' against adoption of the report.

Rejecting Joshi's claim of having adjourned the meeting, Bansal said 'he chose to create a scene' and had 'walked out in a huff'.

He said Soz's election was made under Rule 258 (3) that governs functioning of the PAC, according to which in the absence of the chairman, the members can choose another member to preside over that particular sitting.