Telecom Minister A Raja was in the eye of a storm in the Parliament today with BJP and AIADMK alleging that the country had lost Rs one lakh crore in 2G spectrum allocation and demanding a JPC probe, pending which Raja should be removed from the ministry.
Both the Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha witnessed uproar and an adjournment after members of AIADMK raised the issue of 2G spectrum allocation.
In the Lok Sabha, AIADMK member M Thambidurai, supported by BJP members, asked Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to take the issue seriously and order a Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC) probe.
Thambidurai said Raja should be "kept out of the Ministry" till a JPC probe is held and the ongoing investigation by the CBI is completed.
He reminded Leader of the House and Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee, who was present, of his promise that the government would respond to various issues raised by the Opposition, including 2G spectrum allocation.
Thambidurai was supported by BJP members, led by its Deputy Leader Gopinath Munde and Yashwant Sinha, in demanding a JPC probe.
Even as DMK leader T R Baalu vehemently tried to prevent the issue from being raised, Thambidurai said, "I am not levelling any allegation. I am bringing facts to the House."
He alleged that the country had lost Rs one lakh in the allocation of 2G spectrum during 2007-08.
His contention led to a clash between members of AIADMK, supported by BJP, and DMK, a party to which Raja belongs. The Minister was not present in the House.
In view of the uproar, Speaker Meira Kumar adjourned the House for an hour.
In the Rajya Sabha, AIADMK members forced a brief adjournment before staging a walk out demanding Raja's dismissal from the Union Cabinet over his alleged involvement in the spectrum scam.
As soon as the House met for the day, AIADMK members were on their feet displaying CDs and newspapers carrying purported taped conversation with Raja and public relations lobbyist Nira Radia.
Chairman Hamid Ansari asked members not to show CDs or display newspapers. "This is incorrect. Please do not disrupt Question Hour," he said, before adjourning the House for 10 minutes.