2G scam: A Raja to go by next week?

Clamour for removal of A Raja is growing louder by the day amid indications that the the beleaguered telecom minister might be axed next week as his position further weakened on Saturday by the revelations of a former telecom secretary on how he ignored all warnings.

The Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) leader might be asked to leave the cabinet as early as next week due to the 2G spectrum scam, according to some media reports.
The Parliament saw a ruckus over the last few days on the 2G Spectrum allocation controversy with a stern Opposition demanding Raja’s dismissal.

Complicating Raja?s position on Saturday, former telecom department secretary D S Mathur squarely blamed the minister for the 2G spectrum scam.

Mathur, who retired in Dec 2007, told news channels in Bhopal that Raja went ahead with the decision despite his disapproval and that he had put his foot down on the move.

“I couldn’t approve of the policy to grant licences. I refused to advance cut-off date as asked by the minister. I stopped signing files granting licenses as the process was not transparent,” he said.

Mathur claimed that the decision of Raja to advance the cut-off date from October 1, 2007 to September 25 was not cleared by him at all.

“I refused stating that it [advancing cut-off date] would be against the principles of natural justice.”

Mathur said he protested the granting of licence without a transparent policy.

A report by the Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) had held Raja personally responsible for the ?illogical? sale of 2G spectrum that cost the national exchequer a loss of over Rs 1.40 lakh crore in 2008.

However, Raja, brandishing documents with Mathur’s signatures, rebutted his claims and told the television network that the former telecom department secretary was a part of all the decisions taken.

But Raja?s words did not seam to appease the opposition who continued their unified vendetta demanding the sacking of the DMK leader.

Communist Party of India-Marxist (CPI-M) Politburo Member Sitaram Yechury also took on Prime Minister Manmohan Singh for staying mum on the issue and raising questions on Raja?s statements where he said everything was done with his knowledge.

In a statement on Saturday, the CPI-M Politburo reiterated their demand for immediately dropping the telecom minister.

?With increasing evidence of the scam tumbling out […] there is no way that this issue can be pushed under the carpet,? the statement said, demanding prompt action from the PM.

The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) sang along the communist body saying that in light of the ?damning revelations? the PM ?cannot remain mute spectator and see the other way as he is doing for so long.?

The BJP also asked Congress president Sonia Gandhi and General Secretary Rahul Gandhi to explain their stand on the issue.

?They can choose not to speak on inconvenient issues but they should not forget that nobody can fool the people for (sic.) all the time,? the BJP said in a statement.