New Delhi: The 2G radiowave allocation scam is set to hog the limelight again as Public Accounts Committee has decided to submit its report on the controversial issue to Parliament based on the "in depth" discussions held by the panel then headed by Murli Manohar Joshi.
The PAC also plans to table reports on the Commonwealth Games scam and 'KG Basin -- Hydrocarbaon Production Sharing Contracts'. These two issues were also taken by the PAC then headed by Joshi.
Joshi's draft report on 2G scam in the previous Lok Sabha had strongly indicted former Telecom Minister A Raja and had come down heavily on the then PMO and the Cabinet Secretariat for not taking "corrective action" while not sparing even the Prime Minister for "some unfortunate omissions".
Present PAC Chairman K V Thomas (Cong) said today that he strives to submit the report in the Winter session of Parliament by looking into all the issues "impartially".
He said if need be a sub-committee could be formed to study the previous draft report and draft the present Committee's own recommendations. "The (full) Committee will then have a look at it. It will then be submitted to Parliament," Thomas said.
It is to be seen how different will be the new report from the draft report submitted by Joshi to then Speaker Meira Kumar.
Thomas was asked whether the panel will take a call on draft report on 2G scam and and recommendations finalised by the PAC in the last Lok Sabha on CWG scam and KG Basin.
BJP member in the Committee Nishikant Dubey said if not the Winter session, all the pending reports, including the one on UPA's flagship programme MNREGA, will be placed before Parliament by March 31 when the term of the present PAC ends.
PAC is reconstituted every year on March 31 but parties keep renominating the same members. The Chairpersons, who belong to the main opposition party, are seldom changed during the entire term of the Lok Sabha.
Joshi's draft report was returned by then Speaker Kumar citing lack of unanimity and it could not be placed in Parliament. Joshi kept the issue alive by placing it as a "pending agenda" of the Committee.
When Thomas became the PAC chief, he had categorised the subjects in three categories - new issues, subjects on which briefing or evidence have been held but reports are yet to be drafted or submitted, and issues on which draft reports were approved by the then chairman Joshi and are to be finalised.
Initially, the 2G issue was skipped but later added to the agenda.
Thomas had convened a press conference today to announce the all-India conference of chairpersons of PACs of Parliament and state legislatures beginning tomorrow.
The conference is being held after a gap of 15 years and the last one was held in 2001 when N D Tiwari was heading the PAC.
Issues like giving more teeth to PAC, bringing in more transparency, non-production of records by government departments and government's response to the various recommendations made by the PAC will come up at the two-day conference.
Except Bihar and Telangana, representatives from all states and union territories are attending the meet which will be inaugurated by Speaker Sumitra Mahajan.
