New Delhi:
On his way into Parliament this morning for what's expected to be a fractious session dominated by discussion of the 2G spectrum scam, the Prime Minister stopped to speak briefly to journalists.
"The Budget session of Parliament is very crucial," he said. "The Budget has to be debated, passed. We hope to bring important pieces of legislation for consideration of Parliament. Our sincere hope that this session will be peaceful and productive."
To accomplish that, the government has given in to the Opposition's demand for a Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC) to examine the 2G scam, estimated by the government's auditor at 1.76 lakh crores.
Meanwhile, the BJP upped the ante just ahead of the Budget session with Leader of the Opposition in the Rajya Sabha, Arun Jaitley, saying that the Prime Minister had a lot to answer for and that a mere statement on A Raja will not do.
(Watch)