Raja misled PM on spectrum allocation

Taking a slightly mild stand on the role of Prime Minister Manmohan Singh in the 2G spectrum allocation case, the draft Public Accounts Committee (PAC) report has squarely blamed former communications minister A Raja for deliberately misleading the PM to fulfill his nefarious design leading to loss of revenue.

The report said Raja ‘completely disregarded’ the advice and concerns raised by the PM. Singh was misled by Raja when he was informed that the issue of auction of spectrum was considered but not recommended by the Telecom Commission and the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India.

According to the report, the tone and tenor of Raja’s December 26, 2007 letter to the PM demonstrated arrogance and sense of one-upmanship bordering open defiance. Raja had written that since the file for the issue of Letter of Interest had been approved on November 2, 2007, he wanted to implement his decision without further delay.

The draft report blamed the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) for not enforcing the Transaction of Business Rules to sort out difference of opinion between the Minister of Law and Justice and Minister of Communications and Information Technology. Despite noting that Raja’s decision was not in conformity, the PMO didn’t enforce the rules.

It said Singh’s desire to keep the PMO at arm’s length indirectly helped Raja to go ahead and execute his unfair, arbitrary and dubious designs. When Raja was in a hurry to implement his decision, there was no logic in conveying the PM’s desire to take into account the licence issue on January 11, 2008, when the process had already been over a day before, it said.

The report said PAC members were shocked and dismayed to find out that the then finance minister, P Chidambaram, acknowledged that spectrum was a scare resource, but made a ‘unique and condescending’ suggestion that the matter be treated as closed.

“The committee views it most unfortunate since the finance minister, instead of initiating stringent and swift action against those responsible for whopping loss to exchequer, pleaded with the PM to treat the matter as closed,” the report said.