Finance Minister on Congress’ success on 2G scam

In both Delhi and Chennai, the Congress is celebrating the success of winning the 2G spectrum scam. Raining on their parade the BJP spokesperson comments on their victory

A special Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) court on Thursday acquitted all accused in the alleged 2G spectrum allocation scam, including Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) leaders A. Raja and Kanimozhi. 

Reacting to the 2G verdict, Union Finance Minister Arun Jaitley has said each and every case of spectrum allocation was quashed by the Supreme Court in 2012 as arbitrary and unfair. 

The policy was quashed as unfair and intended to cause loss to the government of India and the government was directed to have a fresh policy by which an auction would take place, the Finance Minister said. 

He went on to add that Congress leaders are treating this judgment as some kind of a badge of honor and a certification that it was an honest policy.

The Congress party’s “zero loss theory” was proved to be wrong when the apex court squashed spectrum allocation in 2012, the minister said.

“That this was a corrupt, dishonest policy was upheld by the Supreme Court in February 2012. Each and every case of spectrum allocation was quashed by the Supreme Court (in 2012) as arbitrary and unfair, the policy was quashed as unfair and intended to cause loss to Government of India and the government was directed to have a fresh policy by which an auction would take place. The fact that the policy caused loss is clear from the fact that the subsequent auctions got a much higher price,” Jaitley told media persons. 

Meanwhile, Congress leaders said that the verdict vindicated then Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and the UPA’s stand that there was no scam in the allocation of spectrum and licenses to telecom companies.

Manmohan Singh said that a massive propaganda was unleashed against his government over the 2G spectrum allocation and now the judgment speaks for itself, TV channels reported.
 
Lashing out at the former CAG, Senior Congress leader Kapil Sibal said, “I have been saying all along that this was not a scam. It was a scam by former CAG Vinod Rai. We stand vindicated.”

On 2 February 2012, the apex court canceled 122 telecom licenses and spectrum allocated to nine companies in January 2008, holding that the process of allocation was flawed.