CAG stands by its report on 2G spectrum

(PTI) In the midst controversy over its figures of revenue loss on account of allocation of 2G spectrum, government auditor CAG today said it stood by the report submitted to Parliament late last year."CAG stands by its report on 2G spectrum hundred per cent", the CAG spokesperson told reporters.Telecom minister Kapil Sibal last week had questioned the findings of the report saying that CAG's estimate of Rs 1.76 lakh crore loss to the exchequer on account of allocation of the spectrum was "utterly erroneous".

The minister had gone to the extent of saying that government did not suffer any loss.(PTI) Asserting that Prime Minister Manmohan Singh had not given any direction on the pricing of spectrum in 2007, Telecom Minister Kapil Sibal today said prima facie it was evident that procedure to allocate spectrum lacked transparency."Yes, I believe so. We believe that the allocation of spectrum was wrongly made in terms of implementation of the policy. Otherwise, I would not have a one-man committee of the retired Supreme Court judge to look into the matter," he told Karan Thapar on "India Tonight" programme to be telecast on CNBC TV 18 channel.On the issue of CAG's interpretation that former Telecom Minister A Raja disregarded Prime Minister's direction to auction 2G spectrum, Sibal said there was no such direction.
"CAG has interpreted something which the government does not agree," he added.

Jan 10 (PTI) Telecom Minister Kapil Sibal may have created a flutter by describing "It is human to err and to err is human, so the exercise was fraught with very serious errors, which has allowed the opposition to spread falsehood." Further Kapil added as incorrect the CAG report on the presumptive loss of Rs 1.76 lakh crore in the 2G allocation but the Supreme Court today said it cannot take cognizance of that as it is not part of the record.The court's remark came when advocate Prashant Bhushan appearing for NGO Centre for Public Interest Litigation (CPIL) seeking cancellation of the 2G licenses submitted that Sibal had disputed the CAG report on the presumptive loss of 1.76 lakh crores, saying it was not correct."We cannot take cognizance of that as it is not part of the record,"but "issue has now become debatable". a bench comprising justices G S Singhvi and A K Ganguly said.

"So, now the CAG conclusions are being doubted!", remarked a Bench comprising Justices G S Singhvi and A K Gangul,If CAG report basis of CBI probe, why is Sibal doubting it?"If the public exchequer and the government did not suffer any loss at all, then we will ask the government," Justices Singhvi and Ganguly said.

Bench further added CAG report, discussed threadbare in earlier hearings on the spectrum scam, was an important reason why the Centre and CBI both agreed for the probe being monitored by the court."Even the Central Vigilance Commission (CVC) in its communication to CBI asking it to register a case (in the 2G spectrum allocation) says something is seriously wrong," the Bench said