Thaindian News

New Delhi, Dec 10 (IANS) Communications Minister Kapil Sibal Saturday strongly refuted accusations by Janata Party chief Subramanian Swamy that P. Chidambaram as then finance minister had a role in the spectrum scam and should be prosecuted, but the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has dismissed the contention and said that his role should be properly investigated.

Sibal said Chidambaram was being maligned by the opposition, although he as the then finance minister had not played any role in issuing letter of intents (LoI) to new players or fixing the entry fee at Rs.1,650 crore.

“It is preposterous to suggest that P.Chidamabaram had any role in fixing the entry fee or issuing the LoIs,” Sibal told reporters here, adding that Chidambaram had, in fact, recommended for an increase in entry fee, which was not agreed by then communications minister A.Raja.

Swamy has sought to make Chidambaram a party in the spectrum case, saying the decision on spectrum pricing was taken in 2008 jointly by him and Raja, who is lodged in Tihar Jail since Feb 2.

A special CBI court has allowed Swamy to again depose before it as a witness to prove his claim of Chidambaram’s alleged complicity in the spectrum scam.

Department of Telecommunications, under Raja’s tenure, had issued LOIs on Jan 10, 2008. This too, Sibal said, was done without the knowledge of Chidambaram.

“There was no meeting between the finance minister and A.Raja prior to Jan 10, 2008, on this issue,” said Sibal.

He added that the CBI had, in fact, found nothing wrong with Chidambaram’s conduct during his tenure as finance minister.

“Therefore, any attempt by the opposition to foist any culpability on P.Chidambaram is not only irresponsible but is yet another desperate attempt to make the institution of parliamentary democracy disfunctional,” Sibal said.

“P.Chidambaram is a valued colleague and has discharged his responsibilities without fear or favour and absolute integrity and devotion,” he said.

The BJP, however, refused to buy Sibal’s assertions.

BJP spokesperson Ravi Shankar Prasad said that Chidambarm’s role should be “determined” in the 2G spectrum scam.

“What the BJP is demanding is determining Chidambaram’s role as then finance minister in the spectrum scam,” he said, terming it “surprising” that after Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee, “it is the turn of Kapil Sibal to appease Chidambaram”.

Prasad alleged that Chidambaram did not take appropriate steps to ensure auction of spectrum in transparent manner.

He alleged that Chidambaram “over-ruled” senior officers and allowed 2G spectrum allocation at 2001 prices in spite of a phenomenal rise in tele-density in the country.