New Delhi: A former CAG official, who dealt with the 2G audit, Friday rubbished the
Rs.1.76 lakh crore ($35 billion) presumptive loss findings and
claimed that BJP leader Murli Manohar Joshi influenced the final
audit report, giving enough ammunition to the Congress to take a
dig at the opposition party.
The day began with retired CAG director general R.P. Singh coming
before the media to claim he only pegged the 2G loss at Rs.37,000
crore, but when the final report was brought to him for signing,
it had the Rs.1.76 lakh crore as the loss figure.
Singh also claimed that Joshi, parliament's Public Accounts
Committee (PAC) chairman, had spoken to the CAG officials a day
before it was made public, implying that the BJP leader influenced
the final report on the loss figure.
"This loss figure (of Rs.1.76 lakh crore) did appear before me in
a draft audit report submitted by my field office. I discussed it
with them. I asked for supporting documents... on what basis they
were saying these are losses. They said: 'We are taking it as
presumption'," Singh told a news channel.
Singh said the loss figure, according to his report, was around
Rs.37,000 crore and the amount was recoverable.
"These were presumptive losses; you can dispute these as they are
not the actual losses," Singh said.
Soon after Singh's claims, BJP hit back, saying Singh was a "pawn
in the hands of the Congress and the government".
"Why didn't R.P. Singh take up this matter while he was in the CAG?
After retirement, he is making such claims. It is a campaign to
malign the CAG and the PAC," said Joshi.
"This man (Singh) himself presented the report to the PAC. Why
didn't he say that he did not agree at that time? All this is an
attempt by the government to malign the CAG and R.P. Singh is a
part of that attempt," he said.
"The government is targeting the institution of the CAG to hide
its own misdemeanours. It is a part of that campaign," Joshi
added.
BJP spokesman Ravi Shankar Prasad asked why did Singh, who retired
in September 2011, keep quiet for one year.
The CAG, however, refused to join issue with its former auditor,
saying it does not react to media reports.
"We do not react to media reports about our reports," a CAG
official said tersely when IANS sought a response.
Rubbishing all of Singh's claims, the CAG official told IANS: "The
CAG report in question (the Rs.1.76 lakh crore loss) bears the
counter signature of R.P. Singh, who was the DG (director general)
and was the auditor concerned for the telecom sector."
Singh's claims, however, have provided fodder for the ruling
Congress party to go on the offensive against the BJP and the CAG.
After a meeting of the Congress core group, United Progressive
Alliance (UPA) chairperson Sonia Gandhi said she thought the BJP
has been "exposed".
"Absolutely. I think so," Sonia Gandhi told reporters in the
parliament complex when asked if the BJP's accusations had
back-fired.
Joshi should clarify his stance on the controversy, Information
and Broadcasting Minister Manish Tewari said.
"What is extremely important is that (in) May 2010, when the draft
report is prepared by R.P. Singh, the loss is quantified at
Rs.20,645 crore. But in November 2010, (when) the report is
presented before the parliament, the loss jumps to Rs.1 lakh
76,000 crore," he said.
Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kamal Nath said: "I believe the
issue will be discussed in the parliament too."
The Left parties too wanted the BJP and the CAG to respond to the
allegation.
Communist Party of India secretary D. Raja said the allegations
against Joshi were serious, if one believed the retired auditor's
claims.
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