Former CAG Vinod Rai said he has no regrets about his report on 2G spectrum allocation, which pegged notional losses to the exchequer at Rs 1.76 lakh crore.
"I don't regret the figure at all because markets are dynamic. Prices are dictated by supply and demand at that point of time," he said today in response to a question on whether he stood by his report on the 2G spectrum allocation.
The report of the Comptroller and Auditor General of India said the government incurred a notional loss of Rs 1.76 lakh crore. The report tabled in Parliament in 2010 created a political storm and also led to the cancellation of 122 licences by the Supreme Court in February 2012.
Rai, speaking to CNBC TV18, said that figures are dynamic and may change over time.
"A figure of Rs 1.76 lakh crore may not hold true in 2014. The figure of 2001, which was taken for sale in 2008, was not correct and was told to the department by a person no less than the Finance Minister and the Prime Minister.
"Figures hold true depending upon the situation that persist at that point of time. May be three years down the line Rs 1.76 lakh crore would appear to be too small," he said.
Replying to questions on the CAG's report on coal block allocations, Rai said out of the 57 mines allotted in 2005, mining has not started in 56, indicating that the objectives have not been met.
"You should have taken a decision long time back to scrap it and give it to somebody else who probably was a better person to exploit that potential that you had alloted," he said.
