)
After a hectic debate in the House, parliamentary affairs minister Kamal Nath said only a JPC probe would be able to “monitor the investigating agency (Central Bureau of Investigation, or CBI) and speed up the investigation”. The JPC, which will comprise 20 Lok Sabha members and 10 from the Rajya Sabha, is expected to give its report to Parliament within three months.
The BJP, however, said the JPC probe was a “diversionary tactic” so that the government would not have to probe those who had received kickbacks in the Rs 3,500-crore deal.
Apart from the BJP, other Opposition parties such as the Janata Dal (United), the Trinamool Congress and the Communist Party of India walked out in protest against the move to constitute the JPC. Leader of the Opposition in the Rajya Sabha Arun Jaitley described the JPC as “an exercise in futility”, as only interrogation, extradition and a definite probe would help arrive at the truth – something beyond the ambit of a JPC.
Replying to the debate, Defence Minister A K Antony said there would be no "cover-up" and the government was determined to go to the "root of the scam". Antony stated two investigations were on at present – the probe by the Italian government and another by CBI. "We have nothing to hide... We will not cover-up, we will not be a party to the cover up. We will go to the root of the issue. Whoever is responsible will have to bear serious consequences," Antony said.
Defending the government’s record in tackling corruption, Antony said: “Six powerful foreign companies have been blacklisted by my ministry.” A CBI inquiry was also ordered in the case. "Names of 11 individuals and four companies have come up in the investigation."
Starting the debate in the upper house, BJP’s Prakash Javadekar said, “There is always a pattern in which the Congress acts. First, they completely deny the existence of a scam; then, they try to delay; and when they are under unavoidable pressure, they try to blame it on others – their allies like in the case of the 2G scam.” Javdekar demanded a CBI probe monitored by the Supreme Court.
Not all Opposition parties, however, supported BJP’s move. The Communist Party of India (Marxist) backed the move to have a JPC probe. The Samajwadi Party and the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP), both of which are supporting the UPA government from outside, also demanded a joint parliamentary investigation.
BSP supremo Mayawati said as parliamentary proceedings were continuously derailed by several scams, crucial issues facing the country were not being discussed. She demanded the defence deal be cancelled and a JPC probe be constituted.
Interestingly, the BJP’s ally Shiv Sena also demanded a JPC probe.
