The Spectrum Tussle - Cdma V Gsm

[kesav 127]

Justice (Retd) Shivraj Patil submits report to Telecom Minister

The one-man panel that went into the procedures for giving 2G licences between 2001 and 2009 has identified the officials responsible for lapses in implementing the policy in a transparent and fair manner.

Justice (Retd) Shivraj Patil on Monday submitted the report to Telecom Minister Kapil Sibal and said: “I have identified the officials on whose part there were deficiency or were lapses“.

The one-man committee was set up by Sibal to look into the policies and procedures followed during the distribution of licences in 2001—2009, a period that includes the NDA regime, and ascertain if they were followed in a transparent manner.

“Some officials have been named and some procedures have been commented upon... What the future course of action should be for the grant of spectrum has been commented upon,” Kapil Sibal said after receiving the report.

Asked about the role of former telecom minister A. Raja in the allocation procedure, both Sibal and Patil declined to comment.

“The Central Bureau of Investigation is dealing with the criminal culpability... That is a different issue. My report deals with the procedures followed by the Department of Telecom (DoT) while granting licences and allocating spectrum during 2001 to 2009,” Patil told reporters here.

Patil pointed out that there was some difficulty in procuring original documents in some cases, as the same were with the CBI, who is investigating into the 2G spectrum scam.

“However, the copies were produced by my reference...,” he acknowledged.

The committee was constituted to look at the internal departmental procedures adopted by the DoT during 2001—09 with the issuance of telecom, access service licences and allocation of spectrum to all telecom access service licencees during this period.

This was done in view of government auditor Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) quantifying the revenue loss to the exchequer on account of the sale of 2G licences and spectrum in 2008 by the then Telecom Minister A. Raja, who insists that he only followed the policies of his predecessors, at up to Rs 1.76 lakh crore.

Justice Patil has submitted a 150-page report with annexures running into 1,300 pages.

However, Mr. Sibal did not divulge the details of the findings, but said he would soon look into the report.

source :: http://telecomtiger.com/PolicyNRegulation_fullstory.aspx?storyid=10639&flag=1&passfrom=topstory&section=S174

[kesav 127]

Raja questioned by CBI again after 2G report

CBI on Monday questioned former Telecom Minister A Raja for the third time in connection with the funding and allegedly showing favours to some telecom companies in granting 2G spectrum between October 2007 and 2008. Raja, who was questioned earlier on December 24 and 25 last year, was called to

related stories

Raja and bureaucrats named in 2G probe report

CBI office this morning and quizzed for nearly nine hours, official sources said.

The DMK MP was asked about his convesrations with corporate lobbiyst Niira Radia and the reasons of advancing the cut-off date of allocation of the spectrum in 2007.

Some of the questions pertained to the role of some of the kin of the former minister in a few offshoot companies of these telecom firms besides the flow of funds.

Raja was confronted with some documents recovered by the agency during searches on Department of Telecom offices in October 2009 after registering a case against unnamed officers of DoT and telecom companies, the sources said.

While Raja was allowed to go home on Monday, CBI sources said he would be called again when he would be confronted with some more questions and documents recovered from the computers seized during raids conducted by the investigation agency.

Raja was questioned at length on the circumstances leading to spectrum allocation which has been criticised severely by Central Vigilance Commission and the Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG).

Raja was forced to resign on November 14 last year in the wake of the CAG report which held that the spectrum allocation at undervalued prices resulted in a notional loss of Rs 1.76 lakh crore to the state exchequer.

Raja got the telecom portfolio on May 18, 2007 and was re-elected as a Member of the 15th Lok Sabha and continued as Telecom Minister from May 31, 2009, till November 14, 2010 before he tendered his resignation.

The Supreme Court has asked CBI and Enforcement Directorate to submit status reports on their investigations into the 2G spectrum case to it by February 10 when the case will come up for further hearing.

In its FIR, CBI mentioned the loss as Rs 22,000 crore based on CVC findings which had referred the case to it.

Radia was quizzed by CBI last week as she had come under the scanner after her tapped telephonic conversations with various influential people including industrialists, politicians and journalists became public.

CBI has also questioned former Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) chief Pradip Baijal, a 1966 batch IAS officer of Madhya Pradesh cadre, and former Telecom Secretaries Siddarth Behura and D S Mathur in connection with the case.

source :: http://www.hindustantimes.com/Raja-quizzed-by-CBI-again-after-2G-report/Article1-656827.aspx

[Honest 836]

Leakage of Tata-Radia tapped talks being probed: Govt tells SC

The Economic Times l 1st Feb l New Delhi

Government today told the Supreme Court that it was taking seriously the issue of leakage of conversation between Tata chief Ratan Tata and corporate lobbyist Niira Radia and that an inquiry has been ordered into it.

"The government views the disclosure of such information seriously and in this context, an inquiry has been ordered," an affidavit filed by the government said.

It also denied the allegation of Tata that it had adopted a lackadaisical attitude on a petition filed by Tata.

"I deny that the government has adopted a lackadaisical attitude or that it was standing by and allowing leaked material of this kind to be freely distributed and published," the two-page affidavit filed by Additional Director of Income Tax (Investigations) said.

The affidavit said that by an office memorandum issued on December 27, 2010, the Ministry of Finance appointed two senior officers to inquire into the leakage of "classified documents/telephonic intercepts".

"The terms of reference of the inquiry committee are detailed and comprehensive and reflect the concern of the Ministry of Finance to properly investigate the matter and to take a comprehensive view of the subject," it said.

The government said it is not correct on the part of Tata to allege that it is its perception that the leakage of such material and its consequential publication were not a matter of concern.

"It is not suggested by the government that it is under no duty to ensure that the wire tapped material is not leaked," the affidavit said.

Tata had moved the apex court seeking a probe into the leakage of the tapes of his private conversation with Radia.

In his petition, he had sought action against those involved in the leakage, alleging that such an act amounts to infringement of his fundamental right to life, which includes right to privacy under Article 21 of the Constitution.

Tata had argued that making public his conversation with Radia also violates his Right to Speech and Expression under Article 19(1)(a) of the Constitution.

Tata's petition, filed on November 29 last, had also sought that as an interim relief steps should be taken to prevent online portals and electronic media from publishing material which had been "illegally" and "unlawfully" obtained by them.

Tata had also sought the court's direction to the government to "retrieve" and "recover" the leaked tapes.

In response to Tata's petition, the government in its affidavit filed earlier in December last year, had told the court that it was not possible for it to stop the publication of transcripts of leaked tapes or to retrieve them.

The government had also contended that the income tax department cannot take action against any cell phone service provider who may have been responsible for "unauthorised supply of information".

"It is not possible or practical for the government to take steps to retrieve the various copies of some of the transcripts which have appeared in the print media or in the electronic media and which are being circulated on the Internet," the government affidavit had said.

In response, Tata, in his counter-affidavit early last month had accused the government of adopting a "lackadaisical attitude" on the leakage of his tapped telephonic talks with Radia, saying the government has remained least bothered about the violation of his individual's privacy.

"Petitioner (Tata) is seriously concerned about the lackadaisical attitude of the government on standing by and allowing purloined material of this kind to be freely distributed and published without taking any step to retrieve it or to find out the source of leakage," Tata had said in his affidavit.

He said failure to protect his tapped conversations from being leaked and letting it reach outsiders "was not a matter of many great moments in law".

Tata had pointed out that the Centre's affidavit to the apex court "gives the impression that it is the perception of the government that while protecting such wiretap material is required by the rules, the failure to safeguard such material leaking out and reaching the hands of outsiders does not warrant any step on the part of the government to retrieve it" or to probe as to how the leak occurred.

[Honest 836]

2G scam: CBI grills Raja for the fourth time

The Economic Times l 2 Feb l New Delhi

Former telecom minister A Raja is being grilled by the CBI for the fourth time in connection with the 2G spectrum scam.

Raja reached CBI headquarters early on Wednesday morning for another round of questioning by the investigative agency.

CBI sleuths had questioned Raja for the third time on Monday.

According to sources, CBI asked him about the role of some of his kin in a few offshoot companies of some telecom firms besides the flow of funds.

Following this on Tuesday, the CBI had quizzed Raja's brother and a close associate.

Official sources said Raja's brother - A Kaliya Perumal was questioned for over seven hours at the agency's headquarters.

They said a close associate of Raja was also questioned.

Sources said the agency is in the process of questioning everyone whose premises were searched by it in connection with its ongoing probe into the scam.

Though officials were tight-lipped about the line of questioning, sources said, Perumal was questioned on certain financial transactions and his dealings with certain firms.

Raja was forced to resign on November 14 last year in the wake of the CAG report which held that the spectrum allocation at undervalued prices resulted in a notional loss of Rs 1.76 lakh crore to the state exchequer.

Raja got the telecom portfolio on May 18, 2007 and was re-elected as a member of the 15th Lok Sabha and continued as telecom minister from May 31, 2009, till November 14, 2010 before he tendered his resignation.

The Supreme Court has asked CBI and Enforcement Directorate to submit status reports on their investigations into the 2G spectrum case to it by February 10 when the case will come up for further hearing.

In its FIR, CBI mentioned the loss as Rs 22,000 crore based on CVC findings which had referred the case to it.

[Honest 836]

CBI accuses Unitech, Swan in telecoms scam probe

The Economic Times l 3 Feb l New Delhi

The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) accused for the first time on Thursday two Indian companies, partly owned by Norway's Telenor and the UAE's Etisalat, of buying mobile licences at unfairly cheap prices in a graft scandal that has tainted the government and spooked investors.

The scandal is estimated to have cost the government $39 billion in lost revenue and has tarnished the reputation of Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, who was forced by the Supreme Court to explain why he took more than a year to look into allegations of wrongdoing in awarding licences in 2007-2008.

A CBI lawyer said the companies, Swan and Unitech, had received favourable treatment during the awarding of licences in 2008 in the world's fastest growing mobile phone market.

"Undue favours were granted in the allocation ... The companies were favoured and spectrum and licences were awarded at a low rate," special public prosecutor Akhilesh, who uses only one name, told a court in New Delhi.

The court is hearing a case of corruption charges against a former telecommunications minister, Andimuthu Raja, and two officials from his former ministry.

The Supreme Court is hearing a separate case filed by a non-governmental group seeking to cancel the licenses awarded to Swan and Unitech. The court has asked the companies to defend their licences.

Telenor, which is 54-percent owned by the Norwegian state, has a majority stake in Unitech Wireless. Etisalat owns about 45 percent of Swan, which has since been renamed as Etisalat DB.

Unitech, India's second largest listed real estate company, denied it had received any favours and it said it had complied with rules. Separately, Telenor said it had no reason to believe the licences were issued improperly.

Etisalat DB declined to comment saying it was not part of the case.

The CBI on Wednesday arrested former telecommunications minister Raja over irregularities in awarding dozens of licences and radio spectrum at below market prices.

The new minister, Kapil Sibal, said he was reviewing the licensing process, warning that some contracts could be cancelled.

PARLIAMENTARY DEADLOCK

The opposition stalled parliament late last year, demanding the coalition government agree to a full parliamentary investigation into what is considered India's biggest corruption scandal in decades.

Opposition parties have called on Singh to resign, saying he avoided pursuing a case against Raja, who belongs to a party that is key to maintaining the coalition's majority. The CBI went after Raja after the Supreme Court ordered it to do so.

"With the latest development in the case, the opposition's demand for a joint parliamentary committee to look into wider aspects of the scam -- including the prime minister's accountability for the actions of a cabinet colleague that he knew about and did little to stop -- has gathered force," a newspaper said in an editorial.

A government auditor said the sale of licences and spectrum at below market prices caused the exchequer to lose up to $39 billion.

The opposition has threatened to block parliament again when the next session, which will discuss the budget, starts later this month. The government is not at risk of collapsing because it holds a slim majority in parliament.

Raja, who was sacked in November, is accused of misuse of his ministerial office to give favourable treatment to companies in the licence process, criminal conspiracy and having unaccounted assets.

Ramesh Gupta, a lawyer for Raja, said the former minister had followed existing rules and had not done anything wrong.

Raja, a member of the regional DMK party from Tamil Nadu, was remanded in custody for five days. Both Congress and DMK have said the arrest would not strain ties.

The DMK stood by Raja, passing a resolution on Thursday stating his arrest did not mean he was guilty.

Both Telenor and Etisalat bought their stakes at a considerable premium after the Indian firms were given the licenses.

[Honest 836]

Never sold shares; eligible to get licence: Unitech

The Economic Times l 3 Feb l New Delhi

Facing charges of selling equity to make windfall gains, realty major Unitech today said it had not sold shares in its telecom venture and asserted that it had obtained the license after complying with the necessary formalities as per guidelines.

Unitech, in a joint venture with Norweigan firm Telenor, had received telecom licenses in 2008. It was alleged that Unitech had sold stake in the venture to Telenor to make windfall gains.

"Unitech Ltd has not sold any shares held by it in Uninor to the Telenor Group. It is highly incorrect to allege that any favour was shown to Unitech during the license process," company spokesperson said in a statement.

Telenor has increased its shareholding in the JV to 67.25 per cent stake through four rounds of funding. Telenor has invested Rs 6,135.63 crore till now.

To the allegation that some operators, including Unitech, were shown preference while granting license, the company said, "Unitech obtained the telecom licenses (through its 8 wholly-owned subsidiaries) along with eight other players, after complying with the necessary formalities prescribed in the applicable DoT guidelines at a cost determined by the Government."

It was alleged that these companies, who received license and spectrum, later sold stake to make huge windfall gains, selling at a premium.

"While the licenses were issued in February 2008, the first round of investment from Telenor in Uninor was received after 13 months in March 2009 and the fourth round in February 2010 after receiving all requisite clearance," the spokesperson said.

"The Telenor Group has invested Rs 6,135 crore in fresh shares over four rounds of investments, linked to milestones. This additional capital, from Telenor, has come into Uninor and remains within Uninor and this has not gone to any promoter to result in any profits," the spokesperson added.

In October 2008, Telenor entered into an agreement to pick up 60 per cent stake in Unitech Wireless. In the first phase, Telenor invested Rs 1,250 crore in Unitech Wireless for a 33.5 per cent stake, followed by Rs 1,130 crore for a 15.5 per cent and another Rs 1,493 crore for a further 11.1 per cent.

Unitech Wireless, which operates under the 'Uninor' brand name, has over 20 million subscribers. It holds pan-India license to offer mobile telephony services across 22 telecom circles.

[Honest 836]

RBI Governor appears before PAC on 2G spectrum scam

The Economic Times l 3 Feb l New Delhi

RBI Governor D Subbarao , who was Finance Secretary when the 2G spectrum allocations were made, today appeared before Parliament's Public Accounts Committee (PAC) and shared "accurate information" on the controversial issue.

Subbarao, as Finance Secretary, had raised questions over the entry fee for mobile operators ahead of the 2G spectrum allocations that led to the resignation of Telecom Minister A Raja and his subsequent arrest by the CBI.

"The current RBI Governor was the Finance Secretary and he shared accurate information regarding his communications with the Department of Telecom," PAC Chairman Murli Manohar Joshi told reporters here.

He said the Committee members held "significant discussions" on the issue but ruled out submission of an interim report on the matter during the Budget Session of Parliament.

He said the Finance Ministry, Telecom Regulatory Authority of India and Department of Telecom were interconnected and hold consultations before taking any significant decisions.

Joshi refused to give any timeframe for finalisation of the report on the 2G spectrum allocations.

In an affidavit filed in the Supreme Court, the government had said on the issue of 2G allocation that the finance secretary had raised certain queries on November 27, 2007, regarding the entry fee. A reply to this was given by the telecom secretary on November 29, 2007.

Asked whether he would recommend a Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC) probe into the 2G issue, Joshi said it was not the job of the PAC to make such suggestions.

To a question, he said the PAC had sought some information from the PMO which had been received by them.

Joshi said some telecom companies mentioned in the CAG report have sent their views on the matter and the same have been forwarded to the Department of Telecom for comments.

Asked whether the PAC would ask lobbyist Niira Radia to appear before it, Joshi said any person whose presence would be felt necessary would be called.

"An appropriate decision would be taken at an appropriate time," was his refrain to questions on Prime Minister Manmohan Singh's offer to appear before the Committee.

To another question, Joshi said the PAC was yet to get a a reply from Lok Sabha Speaker Meira Kumar on his complaint against Telecom Minister Kapil Sibal for his controversial remarks on the CAG report on 2G spectrum allocations.

[KumaarShah 143]

Ex-telecom secy Behura ready to spill beans on spectrum scam

Courtesy ET

NEW DELHI: Former telecom secretary Siddharth Behura has offered to disclose to the CBI everything he knows about the spectrum scam .

Making the offer in a special CBI court, Behura`s counsel chose not to oppose the agency`s plea for five-day custody of the former telecom secretary for further interrogation. "It is submitted that he (Behura) is innocent, however, prayer for police custody remand is not opposed as he is ready and willing to disclose everything before the investigating agency," Behura`s counsel S S Gandhi told the court.

Behura`s offer does not mean a willingness to turn approver, but could spell trouble for A Raja who — according to CBI sources — remains defiant and has dodged crucial questions from investigators. Indeed, Gandhi was already distancing his client from the minister by saying Behura had opposed the controversial decision to change the date for submitting claims for telecom licences.

Raja, who along with his former personal secretary R K Chandolia and Behura was remanded to CBI for five days, continued with his defiance. His counsel opposed CBI`s plea for custody of the accused, saying he was innocent.

Ramesh Gupta, Raja`s lawyer, told CBI judge O P Saini that the former telecom minister was innocent and that all decisions regarding spectrum allocation were approved by the Cabinet and various statutory panels.

Early on, Raja had got a booster of sorts when the DMK leadership in Chennai proclaimed him to be innocent.

Behura`s posture in the court, however, could take away from the comfort Raja may have drawn from the demonstration of solidarity in Chennai, and could help CBI get through the resistance the former minister has put up in the four sessions he has had with the agency.

Sources familiar with the details of his interrogation said the former minister has been evasive in response to questions from CBI officials, and has answered only those he wished to.

Interrogators will like to confront him with the details that Behura may reveal.

In contrast to Raja`s alleged intransigence, Behura has been a portrait of reasonableness. His counsel emphasised in court that the former secretary had been cooperating with the CBI. "Whenever they called me, I have come and cooperated with the agency. I have nothing to hide," Gandhi quoted Behura as saying. His counsel claimed that Behura had no role in the conspiracy as all the decisions were already taken by the time he joined as telecom secretary.

He had joined the department only five days before the issuance of press release, Gandhi argued, stressing that Behura joined the department just 6 days before January 7, 2008, when the department of telecom brought forward the deadline for sumbmitting claims for licences: a move allegedly designed to benefit companies Raja favoured.

Later, Gandhi told TOI Behura had raised objection on the press release in writing, but was overruled by Raja. "He was told that all the decisions were already taken. All this communication was done in writing and is in the files along with the minister`s note," Gandhi said. The documents seized by CBI during the interrogation contain documented proof of the series of communication between Behura and Raja, Gandhi added.

Meanwhile, the court allowed Behura, whose wife is to undergo surgery for cancer at Apollo hospital, to see her before and after the operation on Saturday.

[kesav 127]

All decisions on spectrum allocation since 2003 wrong: Telecom panel

All decisions on spectrum allocation since 2003 by successive governments, including the UPA, were procedurally wrong, concluded the one-man committee, which probed into the procedural lapses following the telecom scam.

Unveiling the report of the Shivraj V. Patil committee, Telecom Minister Kapil Sibal said in New Delhi on Friday that the findings on procedural lapses are being sent to the Central Bureau of Investigation, which is looking into criminal culpability in the scam.

Addressing a press conference a day after the arrest of former telecom minister A. Raja, Mr. Sibal said his predecessor had said that he was “not deviating from the previous policies (the NDA government) but the problem was that the previous policies were wrong.”

Quoting the report, Mr. Sibal said the committee found that original spectrum allocation was “bad” and procedures were not followed both during the NDA government till 2004 and the UPA government up to 2008.

It also said the Department of Telecommunications (DoT) did not follow the advice of the Law Ministry or the views of the Finance Ministry over pricing of spectrum.

The committee has also recommended reforms in allocation of spectrum and penalty on hoarding of the scarce natural resource.

source :: http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/article1156147.ece

Complete Media Brief

[kesav 127]

SC asks Sibal to behave responsibly

Jan 21 2011::

Telecom Minister Kapil Sibal was ticked off by the Supreme Court on Friday for undermining the CAG report in the 2G scam and told to "behave with some sense of responsibility".

"It is unfortunate. The minister should behave with some sense of responsibility," a bench comprising Justices G S Singhvi and A K Ganguly said.

The court's remark came after Janata Party president Subramaniam Swamy contended that Sibal's statement might influence the investigation carried out by the CBI under the supervision of the apex court.

source :: http://www.indianexpress.com/news/SC-blasts-Sibal-s-comments-against-CAG-in--scam-/740503/

It's quite an old statement by SC but needs to be run through.

This statement by SC is absolutely unnecessary and undemocratic.

In democracy, each pillar, either Judiciary, Legislative or Executive is responsible and answerable to the people of India.

It's unconstitutional to stop either of them from speaking to people on the matter of national importance.

What Sibal was doing then was to give opinion on CAG report to the people of India in general and to the people who elected him in particular.

How can Judiciary stop executive from reaching out to the people?

Who else on earth can defend the department in question other than one who heads it?

Where were these Judges when the CAG report was debated on media length and breadth?

Where were these Judges when opposition was(and still) running misinformation campaign based on CAG report?

Will these Judges can bring back any govt(Assam,WB,Kerala,Pondicherry,TN) if it loses purely based on this misinformation campaign?

Requesting CBI to ignore comments of minister is correct but saying minister behaved irresponsibly is 'totally unnecessary' on the part of SC.

Minister is irresponsible to people if only had he not made statements on CAG report.

I deeply beg the president of India (executive head of the country) to intervene immediately and speak to CJI so that such Judicial overreach is not repeated.

No organ (either Judiciary or Legislative or Executive) has right to stop another organ from reaching out to people.

In our democracy, all these three wings of constitution are servants of people at equal grade.

People of India look at SC as the last resort for Justice.

Justice should not be driven by popularity but rather by truth and morality.

It's important for SC to maintain balance between three wings while doing its function.

Edited February 4, 2011 by kesav

[KanagaDeepan 1,084]

I don't find anything wrong in Supreme Court's words to Uncle ji "To behave responsibly", as Uncle ji is going on acting like CongressFAN and NOT like a responsible minister, imho...

[Honest 836]

^^^

Ha ha ha.....not Uncle ji Kanaga bhai.....inko toh aap UNCLE SAM bolo.

[kesav 127]

@Kanaga,

I plead to differ mainly due to irrational use of words (like 'responsible') by SC in the context of minister expressing his opinion on the CAG report.

Minister's opinion may be influencing CBI or may be influencing judges themselves but SC has no moral right in a democracy to stop a minister from explaining his stand point to people of India.

It's further bad when SC does not say a word to stop the spread of opinion favoring CAG report in the public domain but unnecessarily trying to stop an opinion against it.

A meaningful judgement can only be made when both the opinions are disseminated across the nation and intensively debated.

Even in a mid summer noon dream, I can't digest a situation where SC(top judiciary of the country) is blocking the freedom of expression of none other than the top executive of the constitution.

Please see my arguments by keeping your mind completely in the neutral stand point. It would be easy for you to understand.

Edited February 5, 2011 by kesav

[KumaarShah 143]

2G scam: Delhi court issues notice to CBI

Courtesy: ToI

NEW DELHI: A Delhi court on Saturday issued notice to the CBI, asking it to file a detailed report on whether its probe in the 2G spectrum case covers the aspect of national security as raised by Janta Party chief Subramanian Swamy in his private complaint seeking prosecution of former telecom minister A Raja.

"Issue notice to the CBI to file its detailed report of the investigation being carried out by it and whether it covers the aspect of national security as raised by Subramanian Swamy in the present case," special CBI judge Pradeep Chaddah said.

During the hearing, the court queried if they can still proceed in the case before it in the wake of Raja's arrest by the CBI.

Seeking CBI's response in the matter, the court posted the hearing for February 23.

"I am of the opinion that this court should not proceed for the time being with this matter", the judge said while issuing notice to the CBI.

Swamy, meanwhile, submitted before the court that he is intending to move an application to implead some other persons, including Tamil Nadu chief minister M Karunanidhi, as accused in this complaint.

Comptroller and Auditor General Vinod Rai, who had been summoned by the court to appear as witnesses on Swamy's complaint, has filed a certified copy of the entire report concerning this matter through his advocate Sandeep Sethi.

The special CBI judge had on January 22 sought presence of Rai and Director CAG R P Singh in the court on Saturday to depose as witnesses on the complaint by Swamy seeking registration of a criminal case against Raja for his alleged role in the scam, which, according to the CAG, caused a presumptive loss of 1.76 lakh crore to the exchequer.

The court had on January 7 held as "maintainable" the private complaint filed by Swamy on December 15 last year.

He had made a three-fold prayer which included that his complaint be taken cognizance of and Raja be summoned to take the case to its logical conclusion.

As per the second prayer, Swamy wanted the court to appoint him "as a deemed public prosecutor under the provisions of the Prevention of Corruption Act."

Swamy also wanted the court's directions to agencies like the CBI and Enforcement Directorate (ED) to assist him in conducting prosecution and in the further investigation into the scam.

Quoting from the CAG report, Swamy had alleged that Raja committed fraud by adopting the first-come-first-served basis in allocating Spectrum to ineligible companies.

Edited February 5, 2011 by KumaarShah

[kesav 127]

What a crap is this??

When a case is running in SC with senior most judges manning the bench, what is the necessity for the Delhi court to accept such an appeal that too from none other than a lawyer involved in that monumental case???

Is judiciary going nuts in India??

Is CJI sleeping?? How can he allow such foolish things to happen??

Come on SC, we expected a much much meaningful and purposeful Judiciary in India.

Please immediately merge this case with already running case in SC.

We don't want to hear adjournments after adjournments in different court rooms on the same subject.

Citizens want a meaningful judgement in a time bound manner from the SC and not a multiple serials with same story & actors to help the TRP of media.

Please stop the lawyer in question from making the Judiciary as a comedy serial.

Who can bell the cat???

Edited February 5, 2011 by kesav

[kesav 127]

BJP firm on its demand for JPC probe into 2G scam

KANPUR: "We will not allow the budget session to run smoothly if the Congress-led Union government does not constitute a joint parliamentary committee (JPC) to probe into the 2G spectrum case. Merely arresting A Raja and thinking that his arrest will suffice, then they (Congress leaders) are wrong. We will not give up. The entire case of corruption should be probed by the JPC and not by the CBI as the latter is a puppet in the hands of the Centre and it cannot unfold the case truthfully," said former Bharatiya Janata Party's president Rajnath Singh while addressing a huge gathering during Mahasangram rally at historic Phoolbagh grounds on Saturday.

Singh said that BJP and NDA demand a JPC probe into the telecom scam so that politicians and bureaucrats involved into the scam can be brought to book. "We demand for JPC as this will give us power to summon anybody, including Prime Minister and ministers before the committee so as to unfold the case completely. Therefore, Parliament runs or not, we will not give up our demand and this is NDA's final decision," he added.

Singh further said that Congress party's blame that BJP and its allies did not allow the winter session to run and caused loss to the country cannot help them. The countrymen want to know about the people involved in the scam.

"Don't you want to know where the money (telecom scam) went. Don't you want to know who got the money?" he questioned.

source :: http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/kanpur/BJP-firm-on-its-demand-for-JPC-probe-into-2G-scam/articleshow/7433028.cms

Who is he to stop parliament from functioning?

:rofl_200: :rofl_200:

Is he a rowdy or a politician?

What a fool is he to say in the public that he'll stop democracy from functioning?

:Contento: :Contento:

JPC can only stall the functioning of SC, CBI, ED & PAC? It can do nothing better.

It's better for BJP to realize that they're cornered already as for as 'stalling parliament' drama goes.

CPI, CPI(M) , JD(U) have already distanced away from the 'rogue' attitude of 'stalling parliament'.

Centre can take a leaf out of what happened in TN assembly recently.

Opposition tried to play same ugly game in the assembly.

Immediately speaker asked the rogue members to be dragged out and he dismissed all of them from attending assembly for rest of the current session.

Complete normalcy returned to the house.

I think BJP wants such medicine in parliament otherwise they'll not shed their arrogance.

Anyway, they've(Jaitley & Swaraj) already tasted such medicine in J&K recently - courtesy Omar Abdullah

It's imperative upon Govt to show to people of India that they'll never budge for this kind of 'rogue' behavior.

If JPC allowed, it'll only set a very bad precedence of yielding to opposition's rowdyism rather than driven by wisdom.

Any truthful wisdom will say JPC is irrelevant till the SC verdict & PAC verdict comes out.

As per meaning of our democracy,opposition is minority since they represent just minority of the people's thinking. Govt represents wisdom of majority of the people in India.

So, under any circumstances, Govt should and must run through their own wisdom and never ever by opposition's pressure.

[kesav 127]

PM made a thought provoking speech on Judiciary in Hyderabad today.

The key and important paragraph which is rooted in present(germinated due to this 2G issue) and presented as an advice to top Judiciary (CJI was present in the function) from the top executive of India.

........................................................

At the same time, it has to be ensured that the non-negotiable premise of the constitutional scheme – defined as the basic structure of the constitution is not subordinated to political impulses of the moment or to the will of transient majorities. Also while the power of judicial review must be used to enforce accountability, it must never be used to erode the legitimate role assigned to the other branches of government. This is vitally necessary to preserve the integrity and sanctity of the constitutional scheme premised on the diffusion of sovereign power.

.........................................................

This paragraph is peppered with most relevant points necessary to stop Judicial Overreach and to channelize the justice towards truth and morality instead of ill-stimulated majority.

source :: http://pib.nic.in/newsite/erelease.aspx?relid=69623

[rajanmehta 4,056]

Sibal is lying, says Shourie; blasts report on 2G scam

Rediff.com February 8, 2011 13:21 IST

Trashing the report on 2G scam by Justice Shivraj Patil, former telecom minister Arun Shourie on Tuesday accused Union Minister Kapil Sibal of trying to save former telecom minister A Raja by functioning as his advocate.

"Telecom Minister Kapil Sibal is an advocate of A Raja. He always tried to save Raja by saying that he had informed everything to the prime minister," Shourie said.

He said the report by the former judge appointed by the government in December is a complete misrepresentation and distortion and it only helps the government.

The report had said all procedures followed by the National Democratic Alliance government in 2003 as also by the United Progressive Alliance government till 2008 were not transparent and that it was not done in a fair manner.

"Sibal is lying," Shourie said, adding that A Raja changed the priority list for spectrum allocation in 2008 and advanced the cut-off date to help certain companies.

"A handpicked judge gives the report to the government which is so convenient that they can derail the issue. It is a perversity. How can documents be suppressed," he said, blasting the report and Sibal.

"I have the documents which were suppressed and not placed before the CAG (Comptroller and Auditor General)," Shourie said.

The CAG has estimated the financial loss to the exchequer in the allocation of 2G spectrum licences by Raja, now under Central Bureau of Investigation custody, at Rs 1.76 lakh crore (Rs 1.76 trillion).

He said that while "Justice Patil says we (the Bharatiya Janata Party regime) deviated from Trai recommendation, actually every single Trai recommendation was adhered to by us in letter and spirit."

"On every single matter of this we consulted Trai and acted accordingly. This was done in consultation with the finance ministry. Member Finance was sitting on every meeting. His signatures are on every decision including 'first-come, first-serve'," he said.

On the charge of wrongdoing in distributing spectrum during NDA regime, Shourie countered it saying, "This was not the Manmohan Singh cabinet that the ministry could do anything. It was the Atal Bihari Vajpayee's cabinet. You could not do one millimetre more than what Cabinet has decided."

The CBI arrested Raja on February 2 in connection with its probe in the 2G scam.

"Sibal gives half truths. He is not the advocate of the government. He is advocate of Raja and with every press conference he holds to protect Raja and implicates the prime minister."

Shourie, however said, that he did not agree with the estimate of the CAG on the losses incurred to the exchequer on 2G.

"Sibal has said that Raja had kept the prime minister fully informed of every decision. In that case what was Manmohan Singh doing for the last six-and-a-half years when the loot was going on?" asked Shourie.

He said Raja had suddenly advanced the date for accepting applications for spectrum licenses which was fixed for October one, 2008.

"He (Raja) does not disclose that they changed the basis of first-come-first serve...It will not be the date of application but the date on which the letter of intent was fulfilled. Among the conditions were that you bring Rs 1,650 crore (Rs 16.50 billion) by bank draft within 41 minutes," he said.

There was 'misrepresentation' of facts in the Patil report which Shourie termed as a 'fabrication' by Sibal.

Justice Patil was appointed in December to scrutinize the procedure relating to 2G spectrum allocation. Raja was forced to resign in the wake of the CAG report and Sibal asked to look after the key ministry.

The Patil report said that there has been no transparent decision in the allocation of spectrum since 2003.

It blamed the NDA government, of which Shourie was a part, for introducing faulty policies, including the 'first-come, first-serve' policy for companies who applied for spectrum.

[kesav 127]

Disruption won't pay off, BJP leaders concede

Important BJP leaders are beginning to concede it will be neither practical nor politically beneficial for the party to continue to disrupt parliamentary proceedings in the budget session. They, however, insist that it is firm on the demand for a joint parliamentary committee probe into the 2G spectrum scandal.

Officially, the BJP's stand is to wait and watch for what is on offer at Tuesday's meeting of Opposition party leaders called by Leader of the House Pranab Mukherjee before finalising its strategy. But a view is growing in the party that it will gain nothing by continuing with the tactics it followed in the winter session during which Parliament was not at all allowed to function except on day one.

“Presentation of the budget has a certain sanctity,” chief BJP spokesman Ravi Shankar Prasad said on Friday in response to a question whether the party would allow the government to present the Union budget if a JPC was not set up. He added the strategy would be decided immediately before the session.

On Saturday another leader said: “The BJP does not want to be blamed for continued disruption of Parliament, Besides, there are numerous and pressing economic issues of concern to the people that need to be discussed, including inflation and black money stashed away in tax havens abroad.”

It was also pointed out there was talk of the government wanting to bring in the Lokpal Bill and legislation on land acquisition. The BJP cannot afford to prevent Parliament from taking up these important issues, one leader said.

This sounded quite different from the speech made by the former president Rajnath Singh, who at a public meeting in Kanpur on Saturday was reported to have indicated the party would continue with its stalling tactics if the government did not concede the JPC demand. But that claim is being dismissed as rhetoric.

None of the principal BJP players who will be involved in working out the budget session strategy — L.K. Advani, Sushma Swaraj or Arun Jaitley — has given direct answers to the question posed to them over the last one week: will the BJP continue its disruptive tactics if the government does not concede a JPC? All of them said the strategy was yet to be finalised.

Clearly, the BJP hopes Mr. Mukherjee will bring to the table a formula that will make it easier for both sides to ensure a smooth budget session. Party leaders are dismissing the offer of a “debate” in Parliament on whether or not there should be a JPC. “We will reject such an offer,” a leader said adding, “the government must concede our demand or reject it.”

Anxiety on both sides

There is anxiety on both sides, the ruling and the Opposition, over the budget session going the way of the winter session. And the main Opposition is not too sure how a signal that it is preventing Parliament from working will work out politically on the ground. There is also the view that after the arrest of the former Communications Minister, A. Raja, the Opposition stance that the government is doing nothing would not wash.

A couple of senior party leaders privately said, at the end of the winter session, they did not approve of the BJP preventing Parliament from functioning.

Making a political point was one thing, but not allowing the House to function began to look like an anti-democratic stance, they said, adding they hoped the budget session would be different.

source :: http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/article1159224.ece?homepage=true

Finally, reality bites BJP.

At last, some sense has descended upon on the organization which is well known of egoism and arrogance.

Even under extra-ordinary circumstances, it's imperative upon legislative to function. That's when our democracy can survive.

Unless and otherwise legislative functions, there's no one to monitor the functioning of Executive and Judiciary.

After all, our legislative only works for 1/4 of an year against full year functioning of our executive and judiciary.

Any sensible citizen can imagine the quantum of tasks lying in front of legislative which has been created due to the round the clock functioning of executive and judiciary.

The task of running parliament rests with each and every member of parliament.

An MP who blocks the parliament is actually making mockery of the people who have elected him from his constituency.

JPC is irrelevant till the verdicts of SC and PAC.

Even if BJP has other opinion on the matter it's undemocratic for BJP to block parliament from functioning.

BJP can only place the request of JPC before Govt and it can never dictate it.

If govt reject it, I plead with BJP(if it has guts) to take it to the streets and convince people of India to get majority in the next election and constitute JPC then.

This is the way our democracy functions.........

Please don't dictate the Govt. when you're a minority in the parliament. It's like imposing wisdom of minority of the people over the majority of the people.

It's totally undemocratic.......

Edited February 8, 2011 by kesav

[kesav 127]

It's time Govt makes a firm statement that "JPC is not acceptable" till SC & PAC verdicts.

This govt is too feeble and weak and never makes its stand firm.

It's time to prove to the people of India that it can protect the functions of constitutional institutes being hijacked.

Let the opposition parties decide their own course of action.

If opposition continues any unruly behavior, it's the onus of responsibility on speakers to evict them out of the houses and run the parliament.

"JPC is not acceptable" is Govt's clear position.

Parliament must run is democracy's requisite.

Both has to happen irrespective of whether opposition likes or not.

Allowing JPC at this stage is utter foolishness and it'll only serve to disrupt and disrespect the constitutional authorities'(CBI,ED,SC & PAC) ongoing investigations.

If JPC is needed, why on earth we need SC,CBI,ED & PAC ??

Let us dismantle all our constitutional bodies and then constitute JPC as the only investigating & judicial agency at the centre.

Edited February 8, 2011 by kesav

[prafull4u 24]

The government is not weak... The PM is and The Leaders of the government are except for 1-2 person.... And which democracy are you talking abt? does it really exist? The only thing which exist parallel with this government is Corruption and Scams .. that too in uncountable numbers.. In the year when we should Think abt Growth of the country and its people we are stuck in floods of scams and a weak economy (The Inflation figures and the Fiscal deficit says that)

[KumaarShah 143]

TRAI recommends six-fold hike in price of start-up 2G spectrum

Courtesy: ET

NEW DELHI: In a development that has huge financial implications for existing as well as new operators, telecom regulator TRAI has recommended fixing the price for 6.2 Mhz of pan-India start-up 2G spectrum at Rs 10,972.45 crore, more than six times the present cost of Rs 1,658 crore.

In its recommendations to the Department of Telecom (DoT), Trai has also said that every Mhz of additional spectrum (on an all-India basis) beyond the contracted limit of 6.2 Mhz would cost a massive Rs 4,571.87 crore.

Most of the telecom firm, including Bharti , Vodafone , Idea and state-owned companies like BSNL and MTNL , hold extra spectrum beyond 6.2 Mhz and the new norms would put a huge financial burden on these telcos.

In addition, the licences of some of the operators, including Bharti, are due for renewal after completing 20 years periodicity in several circles. Such companies would have to pay to renew their licences as per the new norms recommended by TRAI.

When contacted, TRAI Chairman J S Sarma told PTI, "Yes we have submitted the recommendations to the DoT on the revised norms for 2G spectrum pricing."

According to the report, the spectrum prices for both categories -- up to 6.2 Mhz and beyond 6.2 Mhz -- vary from circle to circle.

In the category of up to 6.2 Mhz of spectrum, the prices of one Mhz varies from Rs 7.60 crore in the case of Jammu and Kashmir to Rs 187.38 crore in the case of Tamil Nadu.

In the category of beyond 6.2 Mhz of spectrum, the price varies form between Rs 22.89 crore per Mhz in Jammu and Kashmir to a maximum of Rs 431.95 crore in Andhra Pradesh.

The revised prices recommended by TRAI are effective from April 1, 2010, the report said.

[kesav 127]

Here are the official releases on the spectrum pricing.

http://www.trai.gov.in/WriteReadData/trai/upload/PressReleases/797/prspectrummndiv9feb11.pdf

http://www.trai.gov.in/WriteReadData/trai/upload/Recommendations/127/Lettertosectdotmndiv9feb11.pdf

http://www.trai.gov.in/WriteReadData/trai/upload/Recommendations/127/reportmndive9feb11.pdf

It's really a strong scientific calculation of spectrum price.

:clap: :clap:

:hi2:

Although it's certainly going to raise the tariff,but I feel it's the only way to teach the fools who are crying on the notional loss (1.76 Lakh Crore) to exchequer.

It's pain in the heart but happy in the brain.

As expected, Airtel & Vodafone started making noises.

I feel bad for them but some or the other day natural justice will prevail.

Big companies have to be magnanimous enough to accept the reality.

The clear message from this recommendation are the following

(1) 900 MHz will be re-farmed

(2) Old operators have to pay the same price for contractual spectrum(6.2 MHz) as new operators on renewal of their licenses

(3) Current operators holding excess spectrum beyond 6.2 MHz in 1800 MHz will be asked to surrender or pay one-time price

(4) Price of the spectrum differs circle-wise

(5) There are 2 separate pricing for spectrum till 6.2 MHz and there after.

(6) Highest spectrum price is for TN and the lowest is for J&K

Edited February 10, 2011 by kesav

[kesav 127]

Justice (Retd) Shivraj Patil report on 2G Spectrum

[kesav 127]

Referring post,

What Sibal has to do with report?

If Shourie feels report is not correct, let him attack the retired Judge who made the report...

By attacking Sibal, Shourie discredits the work of a former supreme court judge. This is totally uncalled for.....

Sibal is just consumer of the report as much Shourie is.

I really feel everyone in BJP have lost their brains. Everything is politicized.

I think they'll start blaming Govt even for tremors(earth quake) felt in NE.

:rofl_200: :rofl_200:

The most hilarious part is that he made those comments even before the report was made public.

It only shows that he wants to make ill-informed political comments rather than thorough reviewed sensible comments.

Edited February 10, 2011 by kesav