dereliction of duty in a 14 page note prepared by the Finance Ministry for the Prime Minister on the allocation of 2G spectrum on  first come, first served basis by the then Minister for Telecom A Raja who is now in the high security Tihar Prison in Delhi along with some of his trusted officers who had allegedly abetted him in disposing of the precious Second Generation Spectrum in 2008 at the price prevailing seven years ago thereby causing revenue loss to the public exchequer  to the tune of 1.76 lakh  crore  INR. The huge loss has been computed by the Comptroller and Auditor General of India (CAGI) created by the Constitution and considered the Government’s auditor.

 

The Finance Ministry’ note  sent in March this year  has expressed the view that if the then Finance Minister Chidambaram had insisted on auction of the spectrum instead of allowing sale to some select mobile operators by hand picking them through the  first come, first served basis, the huge loss to the exchequer could have been avoided. Raja has always insisted that it was not his sole decision to sell spectrum through the method and the Prime Minister and the then Finance Minister had been kept in the loop regarding the transaction. However, the Government through its councils has repeatedly denied Raja’s assertions in the Supreme Court of India where the case related to the 2G scam is sub judice.

After revelation of the Finance Ministry’s note, not only the Opposition but also DMK, one of the principal constituents of the UPA Government is convinced of Chidambaram’s alleged involvement in the 2G Scam and are for a probe. Even before the note came into the public domain, the opposition parties and former Commerce Minister in the Chandrashekhar Government Subramaniam Swamy had moved the Supreme Court to make Chidambaram a party in the case involving several other bigwigs. However, the Government and the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) are stubbornly opposing the move to make Chidambaram a party in the ongoing 2G spectrum case in the apex court.

Besides support by the ruling Congress and the Government to protect the embattled Home Minister, it is debated in political circles how long he will be able to defend himself. M Karunanidhi, DMK supremo, has gone on record saying that Raja did consult the Prime Minister and the then  Finance Minister about the allocation of the 2G spectrum on the basis of first come, first served. DMK having 18 MPs in the Lok Sabha can create problems for the UPA II, if it does not stop insisting on probing Chidambaram’s role in the scam. Now the question is whether he will allow himself to be probed or allow the Government to be embarrassed at the cost of losing credibility. The Government is trying its best to put pressure on Pranab Kumar Mukherjee to issue a clarification on the note to help Chidambaram stick to his portfolio. The million dollar question will be whether he and his government can regain the people’s confidence. The case is being monitored by the Supreme Court of India and the Opposition will not rest until the Finance Minister quits and faces a probe by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI).