Just a week after DMK MP Tiruchy Siva shot off a letter to the Chairman of the Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC) on 2G, P C Chacko, terming his decision of not letting former telecom minister A Raja appear before the panel as “unilateral”, BJP leader and member of the panel Yashwant Sinha wrote to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on Monday asking the PM to appear before the panel and direct Chacko to allow Raja to do the same.
In his letter dated April 1 to the PM, Sinha has said he should advise Finance Minister P Chidambaram as well to appear before the JPC. Raising questions about the manner in which the JPC has been functioning, Sinha wrote, “You had publicly offered to appear before the Public Accounts Committee to enable it to reach the right conclusion. You have not made a similar offer to the JPC though many members of the panel have demanded that you appear.”
Also citing Raja’s communication to the JPC, which is in the public domain, Sinha said a former telecom minister has levelled “a serious allegation against the Finance Minister and you”.
Sinha then went on to advise that it would be in the PM’s “personal interest” to “clear” his name. “You may also suggest to the Finance Minister to make a similar offer and ask the chairman of the JPC to call Raja to depose before the JPC.” He added that any “hesitation” on the PM’s part can be construed as an attempt to “hide” facts.