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"The manner in which PAC Chairman Murli Manohar Joshi is functioning proves the opportunism of BJP whose demand for JPC was based on the premise that PAC cannot look into policy issues. The way the PAC is now looking into these things, the opposition party should introspect," party spokesperson Manish Tewari told reporters.
He said that it becomes incumbent on the BJP to "ensure that Joshi as PAC chairman sticks to his mandate." Tewari said that the BJP should "otherwise apologise to the nation for holding the Parliament to ransom" over JPC demand.
Tewari also rejected Joshi`s contention that PAC was a constitutional body.
"PAC Chairman has been erroneously propagating that the PAC has a constitutional stature. It is absolutely incorrect. The Constitution does not mention any such committee.... PAC is but yet another Parliamentary committee," Tewari said.
He said that the PAC Chairman Joshi by pursuing his course of investigation into the 2G issue "is exposing complete duplicity of BJP."
Chairman of Public Accounts Committee Murli Manohar Joshi had a few days back in Shimla said that while the Joint Parliamentary Committee was supposed to work under specific terms of reference and conditions and did not have the right to summon the Prime Minister or any minister, PAC was a constitutional body.
The Congress spokesperson, however, refused to comment on reports claiming that Agriculture Minister Sharad Pawar had travelled with DB Realty Managing Director Shahid Usman Balwa, who was arrested in the 2G spectrum case.
"As far as 2G is concerned, the CBI has already filed a charge sheet. The matter is between the court and the accused. If anybody has to say anything, the appropriate place for him to say it is the court. If BJP has to say something, it can also say it in the court," Tewari said.
He was replying to questions on BJP leader Ravi Shankar Prasad`s statement who described the report of Pawar travelling with Balwa as a "serious matter" and demanded that the Prime Minister clarify the issue.
