Joshi submits draft PAC report to the Speaker

The Chairman of the Public Accounts Committee (PAC) and BJP veteran Murali Manohar Joshi on Saturday submitted the committee’s controversial draft report to the Lok Sabha Speaker Meira Kumar. After sending across the report along with a note on what happened in the last meeting, Joshi appeared before the media to lash out at the way the UPA government and some members tried to protect the corrupt.

Kumar has not indicated so far if Joshi’s report is accepted or not. Joshi, however, has urged Kumar to accept the report and allow it to be tabled in the upcoming monsoon session of the Parliament. The UPA members of PAC have already rejected the report.

According to the rule of the Parliament, a PAC report cannot be discussed in the House. A section of the opposition, which is already planning agitations on the issue, also feels there is no time bar for the Speaker to decide on the fate of the report. In the draft report, the Joshi-led PAC had indirectly criticised the Prime Minister apart from indicting the PM’s Office, then Finance Minister P Chidambaram and Department of Telecom.

Joshi’s term as the PAC chairman comes to an end Saturday midnight. The BJP, however, has recommended his re-nomination as the PSC chief, a seat enjoyed by the nominee of the principal opposition party, to the Speaker.

The UPA members, along with SP and BSP, had voted against the draft report in the last meeting. Eleven out of 21 members had “rejected” the draft. After submitting the report to the Speaker, Joshi, however, claimed that there is no provision for rejecting a report through voting just as there cannot be any dissent note in a PAC report.

Raising the bigger issue of the future of parliamentary democracy in the wake of an assault on the functioning of the PAC, Joshi said, “People of India have the right to know where and how the government is spending their money. The way PAC was obstructed, I feel sad for Bharat Mata (mother India). What will happen to Gandhiji’s Ram Rajya, morality and the poor people of India? Will the country’s money be used only by a handful of people?”

He pointed out that till April 4, he enjoyed the respect and support of all members but when the committee decided to summon top government officials including cabinet secretary and the principal secretary to the Prime Minister, the obstructions started. BJD’s Bhartruhari Mahtab, a strong supporter of Joshi in the PAC meetings told Business Standard, “On April 4, the committee unanimously decided to start preparing the draft report. The members were also informed that Nair and Cabinet Secretary will be summoned. But the UPA members didn’t raise any objection at that time.”

Refuting claims that the report is already rejected, Joshi also objected the allegation of “outsourcing” by a section of the UPA. He also recalled how UPA members had stopped witnesses from answering questions on a meeting on April 15.

The PAC chairman alleged that during the last meeting of the Committee on Thursday, Ministers were passing on “chits” and “calling up” PAC members. Emphasising that members in the parliamentary committees should function beyond party lines, Joshi added the Speaker’s view on the report will be final.

When asked why he didn’t summon Raja as demanded by the UPA, Joshi said the committee found the documents supplied by the telecom ministry sufficient to carry forward the probe.