PNB scam rocks both Houses of Parliament

NEW DELHI: The Lok Sabha and the Rajya Sabha were adjourned on Monday amid uproar by the opposition over the Rs 12,700crore PNB scam and other issues including Nda-ally TDP demanding a special package for Andhra Pradesh. In the Rajya Sabha, both the BJP and the Congress have moved adjournment motion notices on issues the parties say must be discussed immediately, setting the tone for a fiery second half of the budget session. The BJP wants to debate “reports of corrupt practices indulged in by relatives of former ministers under tacit protection by ministers,” after the arrest last week of Congress leader P Chidambaram’s son Karti Chidambaram. The Opposition has sought an explanation from Prime Minister Narendra Modi on how jeweller Nirav Modi defrauded the public sector Punjab National Bank (PNB) and fled the country under his watch.

Union minister Piyush Goyal said on Monday that PNB bank scam involving Nirav Modi and Mehul Choksi “is connected to Congress”. “The problem started during their time. They cannot mislead the nation on this issue,” he said.

Congress leader Anand Sharma, who has moved the Congress notice said, “We will demand answers from the government on the bank fraud scam. We will also demand answers from Prime Minister Narendra Modi as the scam happened right under his watch.”

The government is seeking to counter the opposition’s offensive by bringing to parliament in this session the Fugitive Economic Offenders Bill, a proposed law to punish people accused of committing financial crimes in India and then fleeing the country as Nirav Modi and liquor baron Vijay Mallya have done.

While the TMC led the charge against India’s biggest bank fraud, Tamil parties - the AIADMK and the DMK came together to demand implementation of the court order on the constitution of the Cauvery Water Management Board.

TDP and a Congress member demanded implementation of the promise to give special status to Andhra Pradesh after Telangana was carved out of it.

Major opposition parties on Monday demanded a debate on the issue of ‘bank fraud’ in the Lok Sabha on Tuesday and told the government that other matters should be discussed only after that.

At the meeting of the Lok Sabha’s business advisory committee chaired by Speaker Sumitra Mahajan, representatives of the Congress, Trinamool Congress and the BJD insisted that the debate on ‘banking fraud’ should be taken up at noon Tuesday for four hours and after that other issues should come up for discussion.

The Budget session which began on January 29, will end on April 9. Parliament had adjourned for a 23-day recess on February 9.