Probing 2G scam not my job, says justice Patil

Formally beginning his work to examine the appropriateness of procedures followed by the department of telecommunications in issuing telecom licences and allocating spectrum between 2001 and 2009, justice Shivraj V Patil, a former judge of the Supreme Court, on Monday clarified he was not mandated to conduct a probe into the alleged 2G scam.

''My job is to go by the records maintained by the DoT to study the circumstances and developments in the telecom sector that led to the formulation of the 'new telecom Policy 1999' and subsequently the introduction of the fourth cellular telecom mobile service (CMTS) licence in 2001,'' justice Patil told newspersons in New Delhi.

Last week, communications and information technology Minister Kapil Sibal ordered the formation of the one-member committee to look into the procedures adopted in giving licences and allocating spectrum between 2001 and 2009, covering the BJP-led NDA as well as the previous Congress-led government, popularly called UPA-I.

Asked if he could call any former telecommunications minister for questioning, particularly A Raja who is alleged to be behind the entire controversy, Patil replied in the negative, but added that he could call any DoT officer and seek his assistance while examining the records related to the issue. ''Informally, I can seek anybody's response while trying to arrive at a reason.''

Patil will not touch either the cases being handled by the Central Bureau of Investigation or those being monitored by the Supreme Court. He will also not talk to officials in the Comptroller and Auditor-General of India office that prepared the report estimating a loss to the exchequer of over Rs1.76-lakh crore in the 2G allocation under the UPA-I government.

Referring to the terms of reference of his job, Patil said, ''My mandate is limited to examining the internal procedures adopted by the DoT during 2001-2009 for issue of telecom access service licences and allocation of spectrum during this period.''

The committee will examine whether the procedures were in accordance with the extant policies and directions of the DoT and the government. It will also see whether these procedures were followed consistently.