2G scam: Fin Min file placed before SC, some pages missing

New Delhi, Sep 29 (PTI) Central Bureau of Investigation
(CBI) Thursday placed before the Indian Supreme Court the
Finance Ministry file on the issue of fixing the price of 2G
spectrum in 2008 but it could not be taken on record and
returned to the agency as some pages of the file were missing.
"Check the pages. Where are the running pages"? a bench
of justices G S Singhvi and A K Ganguly said when it found
that some pages were missing from the file.
After drawing the attention of the CBI counsel and senior
advocate K K Venugopal, the bench returned the file asking the
agency to take corrective measures.
However, during the brief perusal of the file, the bench
said it was inherent in the note of the then Finance
Seceretary D Subba Rao that a suggestion was taken from the
Army on the issue of spectrum.
The court also took note that there was a document to
suggest that telecom regulator Telecom Regulatory Authority of
India (TRAI) has written to the Department of
Telecommunication about creating a level-playing field for the
new entrant in the sector so that the new comers do not face
pay more.
The bench also drew the attention of the CBI counsel that
Subba Rao had written a letter in November 2007 about the
pricing for efffective utilisation of spectrum.
The court had Wednesday sought the files to examine
whether Janata Party Chief Subramanian Swamys plea for a CBI
probe into Home Minister P Chidambaram's role in 2G spectrum
scam for fixing the price of radio waves on the rate of of
2001 in 2008.
The court was hearing Swamy's plea that CBI was not
investigating Chidambaram's alleged culpability in jailed
ex-telecom minister A Raja's decision not to auction spectrum.
On the basis of the March 25, 2011, Finance Ministry's
note to the Prime Minister's Office that suggested that
Chidambaram could have insisted on auction, Swamy argued for a
CBI probe into a possible meeting of minds with Raja in fixing
a low price for the spectrum bundled with licence.
During the hearing, the CBI said the Finance Ministry was
looking into the matter of the pricing of spectrum in 2008.
The ministry had on January 7, 2008 prepared a note to
look into the matter of pricing.
Venugopal said the then Finance Secretary was among the
members in the Telecom Commission which was to discuss the
sale of spectrum through auction.
However, the meeting of Telecom Commission scheduled for
January 9, 2008 was postponed for January 15. During this
period on January 10, 2008, the Department of
Telecommunication issued 122 Letters of Intent (LoIs).
The CBI counsel said "Raja postponed the meeting and
jumped the gun".
While submissions were being made, the bench said "the
revenue of the state involved and the issue was to come before
the Telecom Commission which was bulldozed".
However, advocate Prashant Bhushan, appearing for the
CPIL said even after January 10 there was ample time to take
corrective measueres which was not taken by Chidambaram.
CBI on September 22 had defended Chidamabaram by blaming
the DoT for "jumping the gun" in spectrum allocation.
"The DoT jumped the gun," Venugopal had submitted, while
explaining how DoT did not want to go before the Telecom
Commission on the issue of fixation of price for the spectrum.
He had said Chidamabaram, who was then the Finance
Minister, cannot be held responsible for the decision not to
auction the radio waves as the Ministry of Finance was
represented on the issue by the Finance Secretary during its
meeting with the Ministry of Telecom then headed by A Raja.
"DoT did not want the Commission to go into it. The base
price of 2001 (for the spectrum) which was extended in 2003
continued. DoT jumped the gun," the senior advocate had said.
He had said Chidamabaram could not have taken the
decision himself on the spectrum issue without consulting his
subordinate officials, including the then Finance Secretary V
Subba Rao, now the Governor of Reserve Bank of India