The government convened a meeting of UPA allies in the wake of persisting opposition demand for JPC into 2G spectrum allocation, an issue which has paralysed Parliament turning the winter session into a virtual washout.
on Thursday adjourned sine die, ending the four-week-long second leg of the Budget session, during which treasury and opposition members locked horns over Rahul Gandhi's 'democracy' remark and the Adani issue.
Dr Murali Manohar Joshi, chairman of the Public Accounts Committee, has said that the constitution of a Joint Parliamentary Committee to probe the 2G spectrum scam would in no way hamper the job of the PAC that is investigating the massive scam right now.He was reacting to the statement made by Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee that once the JPC was announced, the ongoing probe by PAC will amount to duplication of work.
According to the current plan in Congress party quarters to end the stand-off on a parliamentary probe into the telecom scam, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh is likely to make a statement in Parliament on Tuesday, a day after it convenes, asking the Speaker to form a Joint Parliamentary Committee on the subject.By the rules, Speaker Meira Kumar will authorise this. A JPC generally has two-thirds of its members from the Lok Sabha and the rest from the Rajya Sabha.
Lok Sabha Speaker Meira Kumar on Friday sought to bring the curtain down on the turf war between the Public Accounts Committee and the Joint Parliamentary Committee, asking the two bodies to work in close cooperation and harmony with each other.
"The Bhartiya Janata Party wants to use the Joint Parliamentary Committee as the political tool. It's the issue of ego. It's a political demand so the Congress is not agreeing to it," says Janardhan Dwivedi, chairman of media cell of the Congress, while talking exclusively to rediff.com about why Congress is not agreeing to a JPC to look into allegations related to the allotment of 2G spectrum.
The Shiv Sena has turned down ally Bharatiya Janata Party's offer of a seat in the Joint Parliamentary Committee on 2G Spectrum scam as a multi-national company owned by one of its Rajya Sabha members is allegedly a beneficiary of the contract, sources said.
The Centre for Science and Environment which alleged that soft drinks brands in India contain high levels of pesticides, is scheduled to make a detailed presentation before the Joint Parliamentary Committee which may meet on October 9 and 10.
Ramesh, however, said it was too early to talk about all this right now as the Congress' first priority was the upcoming elections in Karnataka and the string of state polls this year.
Opposition parties, including the Congress, Trinamool Congress, Bharat Rashtra Party and Samajwadi Party, came together in a show of unity on Thursday and accused the Modi government of getting the second half of the budget session washed out, while asserting that if this attitude continues, the country will move towards a "dictatorship".
Hitting back at Prime Minister Narendra Modi for his corruption jibe at the Opposition, Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge on Wednesday accused him of running a "bhrashtachari bhagao abhiyan" (make the corrupt flee campaign), and said that he must stop his image makeover by posing as an anti-corruption crusader.
Bharatiya Janata Party members on Wednesday walked out of a Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC) meeting on the 2G scam, dubbing it as a 'kangaroo court' following differences on the issue of calling Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to depose before it.
The Congress on Wednesday said the Supreme Court judgment on certain matters relating to transactions by the Adani Group has proven to be 'extraordinarily generous' to Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) and asserted that the party's fight against crony capitalism and its ill-effects on prices, employment and inequalities will continue.
Addressing a press conference in the Parliament complex on Friday, Janata Dal President Sharad Yadav said it was becoming increasingly difficult to understand why the government of India was running away from ordering a Joint Parliamentary Probe into the 2G spectrum scam.
The opposition made it clear during the meeting that it will press for a joint parliamentary committee to probe the Rafale jet deal and raise several issues, including the "misuse" of probe agencies and the autonomy for Reserve Bank of India.
Opposition parties on Thursday agreed to jointly raise the issue of allegations of fraud against the Adani Group in Parliament but were yet to agree on the mode of inquiry into the Gujarat-based corporate major.
Department of Company Affairs on Wednesday said it has set up a five-member Task Force to initiate action within six months on the recommendations of the report of the Joint Parliamentary Committee on the stock market scam in 2001.
He accused Jaitley of having the ability to spin "two truths or lies" with "fake self-righteousness" and "indignation to defend the indefensible".
The final report of the Joint Parliamentary Committee looking into last year's stock scam and the temporary freeze on UTI's US-64 scheme is likely to be presented in Parliament on December 19 and may fix responsibility for the scam and the muddle.
She also proposed that nine issues, including violence in Manipur and price rise, be listed for discussion during the session.
'The Bharat Jodo Yatra successfully resurrected the Rahul Gandhi brand.' 'There's a critical mass that has built up for the Congress and Mr Modi is feeling the heat on the Adani issue, the raids on the BBC offices, the Opposition getting together.'
Rajya Sabha Chairperson Jagdeep Dhankhar sought views of leaders of various political parties on ways to curb disruptions in the House at a meeting held on Sunday on the eve of the start of the second phase of the Budget session.
The opposition parties will meet on Monday morning to evolve their strategy in both Houses of Parliament after protests by them on the Hindenburg-Adani issue overshadowed most of the first half of the Budget session.
There was no official word on the agenda of the session which will be held days after the G20 Summit in the national capital on September 9 and 10.
Adani Group stocks have taken a beating on the bourses after Hindenburg Research made a litany of allegations in its report, including fraudulent transactions and share price manipulation at the Gautam Adani-led group.
Chief Minister Bhupesh Baghel asked why the prime minister and Centre were scared of ordering a probe into the fraud committed by the Adani Group.
His disqualification as Wayanad MP is effective from March 23, the day of his conviction
Parliament proceedings were adjourned amid ruckus and sloganeering by the Opposition members over the Adani issue.
On March 13, Minister of State for Finance Pankaj Chaudhary had tabled the second batch of supplementary demands for grants in the House amounting to a total of Rs 2,70,508.89 crore.
Income Tax officials surveyed the British broadcaster's offices in Mumbai and Delhi.
The JD-U supreme leader, whose party, in Parliament, has been supporting the demand for a joint parliamentary committee probe, however, did not seem impressed with the Maratha strongman's preference for an investigation by a 'Supreme Court-appointed Committee'.
The meeting is believed to be called to chalk out the strategy of the Opposition in Rajya Sabha on Monday.
Both the Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha were adjourned till 2 pm after opposition members held protest in Parliament seeking a discussion on the issue.
'If they are not, then the Modi government should order a JPC immediately.'
Proceedings in both Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha were disrupted as Opposition members raised slogans demanding a discussion and a Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC) probe into the fraud-allegation-triggered rout.
The issues listed by Gandhi include Centre-state relations, rise in cases of communal tension, border transgressions by China and the demand for a joint parliamentary committee (JPC) to investigate the transactions of the Adani business group in light of several revelations.
Kharge said the BJP made all efforts to get him disqualified as he was speaking the truth.
Worried by a spike in Chinese imports, the Indian Steel Association (ISA) plans to take up the matter with the government and seek measures to fix "trade distortions". Alok Sahay, secretary general of the group that represents the country's steel producers, said systemic changes were needed. "In order to take any trade measure, it takes a minimum of 15 months' time, due to prevalence of lesser duty rule in India, making India an easy target. "We are going to write to the government on this," he said.
The Congress-led opposition stepped up its attack on Friday against the government over the Adani row and demanded that there should be a thorough investigation into what they alleged was a 'mega scam' as it involved public money.
Parliament's Budget session has been a washout since the beginning of its second part on March 13, with the BJP demanding an apology from Gandhi.
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