New corruption scandal hits Indian Government
After the initial outcry, the opposition agreed to allow parliament to function
NEW DELHI, March 23 (Reuters) - The Indian government has doused a row over up to $211 billion in lost revenue from under priced coal sales but the opposition will pile on the pressure when a report on the matter reaches parliament.
The Times of India newspaper published on Thursday a leaked draft report by a government auditor, saying faulty policies on selling coalfields to private and state companies may have cost the exchequer billions of dollars in lost revenue.
The report caused uproar in parliament and sent markets down on fear this could balloon into the latest in a series of corruption scandals to hit Prime Minister Manmohan Singh in his second term, derailing economic reforms at a time of slowing growth.
But the leaked draft was swiftly denounced as “exceedingly misleading” by the Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG), which argued that the leak did not present the body's final view. The prime minister also weighed in to criticise the leak.
After the initial outcry, the opposition agreed to allow parliament to function until both houses had voted on the federal budget next week.
A spokesman for the auditor said on Friday the final report would likely be ready in time for the second part of the parliamentary session in April.
“The report on the performance audit of coal block allocations is under the process of finalisation and is likely to be sent to the government for tabling in the second leg of the ongoing budget session,” B.S. Chauhan, spokesman for the Comptroller and Auditor General told Reuters.
The government and the CAG have had tense relations since the auditor reported estimated losses of up to $36 billion from the underpriced sale of telecom licenses.