JPC motion in Rajya Sabha on Tuesday

New Delhi, Feb 27 (PTI) The process of formation of theJPC for probing the 2G spectrum allocation scam will becompleted on Tuesday when Prime Minister Manmohan Singh movesa motion in the Rajya Sabha, which is expected to approve it.

Singh, who is the Leader of the Rajya Sabha, will seekthe approval of the Upper House for the motion for setting upthe 30-member Joint Parliamentary Committee.

The motion will also have the names of ten members fromthe Rajya Sabha for the JPC which already has 20 members fromthe Lok Sabha.

While BJP leaders Ravi Shankar Prasad and S S Ahluwaliahave already been nominated by the party, the names of TiruchiSiva (DMK), S C Mishra (BSP), Abhishek Singhvi and JayanthiNatarajan (both Congress) and Sitaram Yechury (CPI-M) aredoing the rounds.

After the adoption of the motion, the matter would bereferred back to the Lok Sabha and Speaker Meira Kumar wouldnominate the Chairman.

The names of Congress leaders V Kishore Chandra Deo andP C Chacko are being mentioned to head the committee that wasformed after a nearly three-month confrontation between theOpposition and the ruling UPA.

The appointment of the committee led to end of thedeadlock in Parliament to probe what is being dubbed by theOpposition as the biggest scam in independent India. Thestalemate had resulted in the washout of the entire wintersession.

In the Lok Sabha, Leader of the House and FinanceMinister Pranab Mukherjee had last week moved the motion forappointment of the Committee to look into the telecom policypursued from 1998 to 2009, including the allocation andpricing of telecom licences and spectrum.

The Committee will also examine "irregularities andaberrations, if any," and the consequences thereof in theimplementation of government decisions and policyprescriptions.

The JPC, which will give its report by the end of themonsoon session of Parliament, will make recommendations toensure formulation of appropriate procedures forimplementation of laid down policy in the allocation andpricing of telecom licences.

The 2G spectrum scam, according to the CAG, has led to apresumptive loss of Rs 1.76 lakh crore to the government andthe issue has become a major one for the Opposition which hasused it to target the government both inside and outsideParliament in the last few months.

In the wake of the CAG report, Telecom Minister A Rajawas forced to quit and he is now in jail. The Public AccountsCommittee, CBI and other agencies are looking into the issue.

PTI MS SPG VSC DEP