Congress divided over Ashwini It is important to run

The House: LS Speaker

The so-called amendments in the draft report on the coal scam were reportedly carried out during the meeting at the law minister’s office on March 5. Those present at the meeting were CBI director Ranjit Sinha, attorney-general Goolam E. Vahanvati and additional solicitorgeneral Harin Raval. Later, a PMO joint secretary also intervened.

It may be recalled that in a severe indictment of the UPA government, the CAG report on coal stated 57 coalfields were allocated to 100 private companies in 20052009 instead of being auctioned or brought under competitive bidding. This, the report said, “was an New Delhi: As Parliament remains paralysed over coal scam and other issues, Lok Sabha Speaker Meira Kumar on Wednesday said it is important to run the House and get the financial bills passed during the Budget Session. “It is important for the House to run, especially when it is the Budget Session, as we have to pass financial bills which is a constitutional requirement,” she said. opaque, subjective allotment, and caused these private companies to benefit to the tune of `1.86 lakh crore.”

Though that report did not name Manmohan Singh directly, the Prime Minister had been in charge of the coal portfolio between November 2006 and May 2009. He therefore lay exposed to Opposition attacks. Some of the beneficiaries included JSPL, Tata Steel, Tata Power, Tata Sponge, JSW Steel Ltd, Essar Power Generation, Adani Power and Jindal Steel and Power Ltd.

Opinion within the Congress, meanwhile, was divided on Wednesday over the fate of the law minister — whether he should continue in the government or should go.