Citing former telecom minister A Raja's communication to the Joint Parliamentary Committee on the 2G scam, Bharatiya Janata Party member Yashwant Sinha on Monday wrote to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, asking him to appear before the committee, following the allegations levelled against him.
In his letter, Sinha said any hesitation on the PM’s part to appear before the JPC will prove that he has "something to hide".
Sinha pointed out that when the Parliament's Public Accounts Committee was examining the Comptroller and Auditor General’s report on the 2G scam, the prime minister had publicly offered to appear before it to enable the committee reach the "right conclusions".
"You have not made a similar offer to the JPC despite the fact that many members of the JPC have publicly demanded that you appear before it," Sinha said.
He claimed that in his communications to the JPC, Raja has levelled "serious allegations" against the prime minister and Finance Minister P Chidambaram.
"I think it is in your own personal interest to appear before the JPC and clear your name. You may also suggest the finance minister to make a similar offer," he wrote.
Sinha asked the prime minister to request JPC Chairman P C Chacko to call Raja as a witness before the committee.
"Any hesitation on your part will only confirm the feeling that you have something to hide," the BJP leader said.
In a separate letter to Lok Sabha Speaker Meira Kumar, Sinha recalled Raja's request to her to be called before JPC as a witness.
He said despite several letters, Chacko has not entertained the request.
"If you also remain indifferent to the goings-on, then Parliament of India will undoubtedly suffer a great setback," he said.
Earlier in the day, Sinha hit out at Chacko for not calling Raja as a witness and alleged that the panel could be used to "conceal the truth" in the 2G scam, rather than expose it.
He also dubbed the decision of not calling Raja a "serious omission."
BJP and Left Front members in the Committee have been backing Raja's plea to allow him to depose before the panel.
