Opinion Who’s afraid of talking coal?

Consider: If X bought a plot of land 20 years ago,its market price would have surged by now,irrespective of whether there has been any construction on it. So the business houses who managed to acquire the coal blocks many years back have minted money,even if the coal has not been mined. In the 2G spectrum case,business houses bought spectrum and sold it. Similarly,coal blocks were bought and sold too. Hence,an artificial crisis was created for coal. Coal was imported at high prices because the available resources were rendered unavailable. That surely negates the “zero loss” idea floated by Congress spokespersons.

Now,the Congress wants us to have a discussion with them to break the impasse in Parliament. We are open to it,but will they care to explain what they want to discuss? I can speculate on what they will want to discuss — first,the role of state governments; then the mandate and role of the CAG,which is a constitutional body; and then elaborate on their so-called “zero loss” theory and on how no responsibility can be fixed on the government. All in all,jo chor,wahi chaukidaar (the one supposed to guard the treasury is the thief). This casts a shadow of doubt on the prime minister who was the coal minister when the allocation took place,on his predecessor and on the current coal minister — all those who held that office.

We insisted they cancel all improper allotments but not overlook the real culprit and grope in the dark for scapegoats. Their arguments in the debate over this in the last few days have been mere rhetoric and point-scoring. Despite the corruption and inflation,the UPA boasts of a parliamentary majority. Who is even disputing that? Arrogantly,they thump their chest and talk about the votes people gave them to send them back to power in 2009. But they read the script wrong: they thought they were sent back to continue their loot. Ever since the first Lok Sabha,never has parliamentary democracy and practice been so badly mocked,as it is now.

Sonia Gandhi,the “Super PM” accuses us of being blackmailers. How can we blackmail those tainted by coal already? When I heard her say that,I was reminded of an Urdu couplet: pata sabko hai kya zill-e-ilaahi chahti hain,woh kaali loot par jhoothi gawahi chahti hain. They want the BJP to approve of their financial turpitude. Instead of asking her party workers to wage a war against the opposition,it would have sent a good message to the nation had she asked for a war to be waged against corruption. The Congress also threatens they will soon “hit the streets” to make their case. They must realise that they are soon,anyway,likely to be forced to be on the streets,as it were.

During the NDA’s rule,I was the minister for parliamentary affairs. So I know it is the government’s duty to ensure Parliament runs smoothly. When Parliament is in session,if,on an important issue like this,a few ministers set the agenda outside the House,what is the point of insisting on a discussion inside?

Indian parliamentary democracy is facing its biggest challenge of credibility ever. Several corruption cases have rattled the country in the last six decades. In 1948,India faced it first major corruption case when Jawaharlal Nehru was the PM. It was a scam over the purchase of defence Jeeps from England approved by then Indian high commissioner to England,V.K. Krishna Menon. Then came the Harish Mundhra share scam in 1957 which smacked of the then finance minister,T.T. Krishnamachari,also under Nehru. Responsibility was fixed and TTK had to resign. Bofors,Harshad Mehta,Jagdish Tytler,the sugar and urea scams became buzzwords for corruption in the 1980s and onwards. On July 20,1989,the CAG gave a report on defence-related services for 1988-89. There was a furore inside the House,microphones were damaged. Sheila Dikshit was the parliamentary affairs minister. No member was suspended. The House wasn’t adjourned. A committee was constituted and responsibility fixed. But the appreciable difference between then and now is that the government of the day allowed the time and space to the opposition to discuss these scams inside Parliament and fix responsibility. Whereas today,the government keeps bellowing outside the House,obliterates constructive debate and then accuses the opposition of House disruption.

The truth is,the government does not want a discussion. Otherwise they wouldn’t set the agenda of the discussion even before it takes place. The three points I enumerated above is all they have the patience for. They don’t want to touch upon their working. What is the point of our asking for a discussion then?

We see no serious message or effort from the government that they want Parliament to function. In fact,they are coordinating with their allies and convincing them to isolate the BJP.

I was amused to hear Prime Minister Manmohan Singh recite the couplet on “aabroo”. My retort: woh apni aabroo se dekho kitna darr rahe hain,tijori apni dono haathon kaise bhar rahe hain. Jis PM ki imaandaari ki kasmein Congress kha rahi hai,us PM ki image demolish ho gayi hai. His “neat and clean” image has suffered the most. If you were to look for the biggest dent this scam has made,it is in his reputation.

The government needs to fix responsibility. There’s a new scam every hour,every day. The BJP will keep raising its voice against all this.

After the monsoon session,in the first week of September,we are planning to launch a countrywide protest. We’ve planned to name it “ghotaalon ka ghantaghar”,since this scam is the latest in the series and a huge one at that.

We want this government to complete its term. But in the case of any eventuality,we are ready for mid-term polls too.

The writer,a Rajya Sabha MP,is the BJP’s vice-president and spokesperson