Parliament won’t function till the PM resigns: BJP

Mangalore Today/ CNN-IBN

New Delhi, August 22: Under pressure from the Opposition, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh is said to be ready to speak on the issue of coal block allocation in Parliament and present his defence. While the Congress accuses the BJP of shying away from debate, the BJP says Parliament will not function till the Prime Minister resigns.

In his defence, the Prime Minister is expected to say that coal blocks were allocated in a transparent and appropriate manner through checks and balances without any favour to any company.

 

 

He may refer to the governments of Chhattisgarh, West Bengal, Rajasthan, Odisha and Jharkhand, saying they had opposed auction in 2005.

He is expected to hold the Opposition responsible for the delay in introducing competitive bidding for allocation of coal blocks. He may also label the CAG’s calculations of the loss as inaccurate.

Minister of State in the Prime Minister’s Office, V Narayansamy told CNN-IBN that the Prime Minister will reply on the charges against him in a Parliamentary debate.

"PM will reply to BJP on coal allocation issue. PM will participate in the debate. PM will answer all the points raised by BJP. But why BJP is shying away because their chief ministers didn’t want coal allocation by auction mode," he said.

On the other hand, the BJP has declared a war on the government. In parliament they demanded the PM’s resignation over CAG report on coal allocations. On 2G, they walked out of the JPC meeting, threatening to quit if the PM and Finance Minister P Chidambaram do not depose before the parliamentary panel.

Speaking to CNN-IBN, BJP president Nitin Gandkari said, "Parliament will not function till the PM resigns. It’s wrong to say the NDA is not united. We are all for PM’s resignation. The only way out could be someone from UPA to talk to us. We won’t attend the Joint Parliamentary Committee till PM is not summoned. Why should we attend if we won’t be heard."