New Delhi:
Pranab Mukherjee has said that the government is ready to call for a special session of Parliament to have a debate on the issue of a Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC) probe in the 2G scam probe.
Parliamentary Affairs Minister Pawan Bansal told NDTV, "Parliament is meant for a discussion, it is the primary objective of the parliament that every issue must be discussed there, please come and discuss it, if necessary now we are even offer a special session for this purpose, please come and discuss this matter there - not for one day but even for 5 days. We will even have a special session."
Bansal added there were no tentative dates and the ball was now in the Oppsoition's court. "They have to respond, tentative dates will be fixed after discussion with them, they have to first respond and I hope they resond positively to this because ultimately its the discussion which is the essence of democracy," he said.
But the Opposition remains adamant. "The party will come with a considered view on it. The instant response I can give you is that discussions have already been held in 2009, discussions have been held on the topic now we want action, " Nirmala Sitharaman, the BJP's spokesperson told NDTV.
She said the BJP wanted to the government to act. "He's saying that he will have a special session of Parliament for discussing the issue. We are looking for positive action. A call for discussion again, atleast instantly, looks as being very redundant," Sitharaman said.
It is that insistence on a JPC that led to a complete freeze between the government and Opposition in the winter session of Parliament which finished earlier this month - with less than 10 hours of business transacted. (Read: 21 days, 146 crores, zero work in Parliament)
The 2G scam has been used by the Opposition to attack the government and in particular the Prime Minister for shielding corruption. The Opposition wants a Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC), which would consist of members of different political parties, to conduct a formal inquiry into the scam. However, the government has so far maintained that this is not required because several inquiries by the CBI and agencies like the Enforcement Directorate are already in progress. (Read: What is the 2G spectrum scam?)
Earlier today, at a massive rally in Delhi, the BJP backed by some of its allies shared its agenda. "The campaign against corruption is in a way a campaign against the Prime Minister," said senior BJP leader LK Advani. The BJP plans a series of rallies across the country to push one point - a Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC) to investigate the 2G spectrum scam. (Read: Will target PM in anti-corruption campaign, says BJP)
Parliamentary Affairs Minister Pawan Bansal told NDTV, "Parliament is meant for a discussion, it is the primary objective of the parliament that every issue must be discussed there, please come and discuss it, if necessary now we are even offer a special session for this purpose, please come and discuss this matter there - not for one day but even for 5 days. We will even have a special session."
Bansal added there were no tentative dates and the ball was now in the Oppsoition's court. "They have to respond, tentative dates will be fixed after discussion with them, they have to first respond and I hope they resond positively to this because ultimately its the discussion which is the essence of democracy," he said.
But the Opposition remains adamant. "The party will come with a considered view on it. The instant response I can give you is that discussions have already been held in 2009, discussions have been held on the topic now we want action, " Nirmala Sitharaman, the BJP's spokesperson told NDTV.
She said the BJP wanted to the government to act. "He's saying that he will have a special session of Parliament for discussing the issue. We are looking for positive action. A call for discussion again, atleast instantly, looks as being very redundant," Sitharaman said.
It is that insistence on a JPC that led to a complete freeze between the government and Opposition in the winter session of Parliament which finished earlier this month - with less than 10 hours of business transacted. (Read: 21 days, 146 crores, zero work in Parliament)
The 2G scam has been used by the Opposition to attack the government and in particular the Prime Minister for shielding corruption. The Opposition wants a Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC), which would consist of members of different political parties, to conduct a formal inquiry into the scam. However, the government has so far maintained that this is not required because several inquiries by the CBI and agencies like the Enforcement Directorate are already in progress. (Read: What is the 2G spectrum scam?)
Earlier today, at a massive rally in Delhi, the BJP backed by some of its allies shared its agenda. "The campaign against corruption is in a way a campaign against the Prime Minister," said senior BJP leader LK Advani. The BJP plans a series of rallies across the country to push one point - a Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC) to investigate the 2G spectrum scam. (Read: Will target PM in anti-corruption campaign, says BJP)
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