Govt Takes the Fight to Oppn Chidambaram, Khurshid and Jaiswal rubbish CAG charges

SPLIT IN OPPOSITION RANKS LIFTS UPA HOPES

Top Cabinet ministers launched another attack on the Opposition and the controversial report of the Comptroller & Auditor General on coal, saying there was a conspiracy to tarnish Prime Minister Manmohan Singh's image and derail economic growth, but the principal Opposition party, BJP, renewed its demand for his resignation and stalled Parliament for the fourth consecutive day. 

Law Minister Salman Khurshid said attempts were on to resolve the logjam and a breakthrough could come early next week. The government is banking on a split in the ranks of the Opposition as parties such as BJD have indicated they could be amenable to a discussion. However, they may insist on a vote after the discussion. 
CPM leader Sitaram Yechury told reporters on Friday that his party wants the PM to make a statement and was ready to participate in a discussion on the controversy, a departure from BJP's stand. "We will decide on our next move after hearing what the PM and the government have to say during the discussion," Yechury said. 
Another Cabinet minister said the Opposition could come around by Monday or Tuesday. "There is a softening of stand by both CPI and CPM, and parties such as BJD and JD(U) too are not in favour of stalling the House," he said. On Friday, Finance Minister P Chidambaram, Coal Minister Sriprakash Jaiswal and Khurshid led the government's offensive in a joint press conference in which they sought to rubbish the CAG's contentious claim that coal worth . 1.86 lakh crore had been handed over for free to private companies instead of being auctioned. The estimate has sparked demands for Singh's resignation as he held the coal portfolio in the past. Chidambaram said the calculation was faulty. "This presumptive loss is so flawed. If coal is not mined, if it remains buried in mother earth, where is the loss? The loss can arise only once the coal is taken out of mother earth, mined and sold at unacceptable price or value," he said. 
Opposition parties were quick to compare Chidambaram's response to the 'zeroloss' comment of Telecom Minister Kapil Sibal, who had said the exchequer lost no money in the 2G scam because it was a policy decision not to auction spectrum. 'Conspiracy to Stall Growth' 
The press conference came shortly after the apex court rejected a plea by Subramanian Swamy to investigate Chidambaram's role in the 2G scam, a term used to discuss the controversial allocation of licences in early 2008 by former telecom minister A Raja. 
Chidambaram, who declined to comment on his exoneration by the Supreme Court, said the government was being blamed for continuing a policy that has been in place before it took charge. "A government that brought about, although after some time, a successful change in policy is being blamed for continuation of a policy that had its origin many years before the UPA came into being. So, if you did nothing, you are not to be blamed. If you try to bring about a change, you are to be blamed. Is that the standard by which we will conduct our public affairs?" he said. 
"We hope the prime minister will be allowed to make a statement in Parliament on Monday. If not, we will find a way to reach out to people," the finance minister said. Jaiswal said of the 57 coal blocks questioned by CAG, only one had begun production. There was a conspiracy to stall the country's growth and tarnish the image of honest politicians such as Manmohan Singh, he said. 
FORMATION OF COAL 
REGULATOR 
The government is working afresh on forming an independent coal regulatory authority, said Chidambaram. The minister, who is heading a GoM on the regulator, said, "We are identifying the aspects that should be with the coal regulator and those that should not be with it. The Bill is being redrafted." "I am confident that it will come back to the GoM shortly and I assure you that in one more meeting of the GoM, we will wrap it up and take it to the Cabinet. We certainly don't want the coal regulator to become the old coal control. I hope all of you agree that you want regulation, not licensing control," he said.

Will the Impasse End Next Week? 
KHURSHID SAYS logjam over Coalgate could end early next week 
OPPOSITION PARTIES 
such as BJD and CPM are open to a discussion 
BJP, HOWEVER, has stuck to its demand for the PM's resignation