Tainted telecom minister refuses to step down

Controversial telecommunications minister A. Raja, under fire from the Supreme Court and a rejuvenated opposition in Parliament, has stubbornly refused to step down, claiming today that he had done nothing wrong in the allocation of 2G scam.

Raja, a confidant of Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) supremo M. Karunanidhi, told reporters today that the question of his resigning just does not arise. ''We will prove that everything has been done according to the law,'' said Raja.

He also refused to be drawn into the spectrum allocation controversy – which has allegedly resulted in the loss of Rs1.76 lakh crore to the national exchequer – claiming that the matter was sub judice.

The Department of Telecommunications (DoT) had filed an affidavit in the Supreme Court yesterday, which said it all, added the minister. The DoT argued that the minister had followed the policies set by his predecessor from the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) government while allocating 2G spectrum.

By selling spectrum at a low rate, it had ensured that telephone tariffs in India remained low, ensuring greater tele-density, the department pointed out.

But Raja's critics note that instead of auctioning 2G spectrum, he gave licenses to select companies, some of who were not even in the business of telecommunications. A few also resold their licenses making hefty profits. When 3G spectrum was auctioned, the government earned a massive Rs68,000 crore, as against a mere Rs10,000 crore through the sale of 2G spectrum.