SPECTRUM AND SCANDALS
Sign in
  • BLOG
  • Editor's Picks
  • |
  • Technology
  • |
  • Entrepreneurship
  • |
  • Business
  • |
  • Finance
  • |
  • Career
  • |
  • New India
  • |
  • Entertainment
  • |
  • Others

    • editricon SPECTRUM AND SCANDALS
    I never knew that Minister for Telecommunications , Mr. Andiappan Raja is adept in handling crises. His interview to the Hindu was an eye opener. the Minister without batting an eyelid has claimed that the process of 2G Spectrum allocation was in deed fair and it fetched revenues to the Government to the extent of Rs.15000 crores annually. He has justified the revenue sharing regime instead of outright auctioning of 2G spectrum as in the case of 3G, because 2G was for comman man and 3G for business. He has claimed that he was simply following procedures put in place by his predecessors like Pramod Mahajan, Arun shourie and of course Dayanidhi Maran who was DMK's chosen man in the earlier UPA dispensation. To a question as to why CAG, CVC and other watch dog bodies institute enquiries to 2G spectrum allocation if it were fair and transparent as he claimed, the minister has retorted that just because one's blood samples were sent for lab testing voluntarily or involuntarily, one can not conclude the donor to be chronically ill. The analogy was beautiful but the question remains as to why he foreclosed the process and why he allowed people without any previous experience in telecom to bid in the process? The Minister claimed that the entire process had PM's sanction and claimed innocence attributing motives to the campaign for his ouster from the Cabinet. 

     

    The Minister further justified the sale of shares of two such firms who won licences- Swan Telecom and one another fetching phenomenal values for their off loading of shares stating that they had been cleared by FIPB under Finance Ministry.  This was the basis for the allegation that the licences were sold for a song? there is some merit in his argument since when VSNL was sold for 1400 crores, VSNL had cash balances of exceeding 1400 crores besides infra structural assets  of thousands of crores. VSNL board itself objected to the subsequent diversion of funds to Tata Teleservices. But Media was not that attacking. This time around, the attack seems to be motivated. The person who can clarify whether all was fair and transparent is Dr. Manmohan singh who has chosen to be silent. Will the PM open up and speak out to the people of India?
    start_blog_img