TIA SPECIAL CORRESPONDENT
NEW DELHI: Congress party seemed to have made up its mind on the future course of action against the union Telecom Minister A Raja. With the removal of Ashok Chaavan and Suresh Kalmadi from their respective posts, the party has already sent the signal to it ally DMK. Highly placed sources in the congress party said that party is in no mood to carry on blot of corruption either on the shoulder of congress or the UPA.
Seriousness within congress could be gauged from the fact that party top brass on Sunday meet at parliament house to discuss the issue. In fact they were gathered at Parliament House to pay floral tributes at the portrait of the country’s first Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru on his 121st birth anniversary.
But later they meet and discussed the opposition demands for the removal of Telecom Minister A Raja from the Union Cabinet for his role in 2G Spectrum allocation. The Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh and party chief Mrs Sonia Gandhi, Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee and Political Secretary to the Congress President, Ahmed Patel attended the meet.
The consultations by Congress leaders assume significance in the wake of the opposition, including BJP and the Left, threatening to continue to stall Parliament if Raja is not removed from the Union Council of Ministers.
Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee on Sunday refused to comment on spectrum controversy involving telecom minister A Raja, saying that whatever has to be said will be said in Parliament.
"Parliament is in session. Whatever needs to be said on telecom minister A Raja, will be said in the Parliament," Mukherjee told reporters on the sidelines of World Economic Forum in New Delhi.
In Thiruananthapuram, Defence Minister A K Antony said that there was no cover up and no witch hunt within the Government when asked about row over 2G Spectrum issue, he told media persons to ‘wait and watch’.
Earlier Raja has ruled out his resignation, saying he has done everything according to the procedures set by his predecessors. His party chief M Karunanidhi also defended him saying he was not guilty. Main opposition BJP and other parties have given enough hints that they would confront the Prime Minister in Parliament to tell what action he intended to take against Raja and why he was being shielded.
The parties also plan to seek an explanation from the Prime Minister for the minister’s comments that he had kept the PMO in the loop at every stage during the spectrum allocation. The opposition campaign for the removal of Raja is expected to gain further momentum in the days ahead with the CAG report on the 2G Spectrum allocation pointing to revenue loss of up to 1.76 lakh crore rupees set to be tabled in Parliament.
In an other development senior DMK leader and Tamil Nadu Law Minister Durai Murugan today arrived in here, amidst rising clamour for Union Minister A Raja’s removal from the Cabinet. His visit has raised speculation that he may discuss the issue of the opposition demand for the Telecom Minister’s removal for his involvement in the 2G Spectrum allocation.