Smaller parties seek berth in 2G telecom JPC

While the setting up of a joint parliamentary committee (JPC) to probe the 2G scam is now just a formality, smaller political parties are now trying to get a berth in the panel.

Parliamentary affairs minister Pawan Bansal admitted on Friday that a decision on the JPC would be taken over the next few days. He indicated that the JPC could comprise 30 members – 20 from the Lok Sabha and 10 from the Rajya Sabha – instead of the 21 mentioned during the government's talks with the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).

Sitaram Yechury, the CPM politburo member and a Rajya Sabha MP, notes that even a smaller panel such as the Parliamentary standing committee – which is like a mini-JPC – has 30 members. ''So why should the JPC not have 30 members?'' he asks.

 A 21-member JPC would deprive the smaller parties of a place in the panel.

The AIADMK, a formidable rival of the ruling Dravida Munnetra Kazhagham (DMK) in Tamil Nadu, is also keen to get a berth in the JPC, as it hopes to expose the alleged wrongdoings of its rival, especially in time for the assembly elections in the southern state due later this year.

JPC membership is usually given on the basis of proportional representation. Both the Congress and the BJP would dominate the committee.