In a bid to give the defiant BJP a taste of its own medicine, Congress raised questions on the former NDA regime's policy in allotting the coal blocks and its alleged double-standards over the reports of Comptroller Auditor General (CAG).
HRD Minister Kapil Sibal convened a press meet on Wednesday, to encounter the BJP head-on with the latest Coalgate scandal. His main target appeared to be Leader of Opposition in Rajya Sabha, Arun Jaitley, and other BJP leaders.
Sibal must have done his research before calling the press to take on the BJP. He said that the opposition party leaders were suffering from 'selective amnesia', citing instances in which erstwhile Union Ministers of NDA regime had criticized the CAG reports in the past.
He also released a bunch of documents, which supposedly questions the functioning of NDA regime in allocating coal blocks between 1998 and 2003. He said that the allocation of coal blocks between the mentioned periods were carried out without any established procedure.
"If the screening committee's procedures post-2005 are being questioned and presumptive loss calculated, what about presumptive loss on allocations made between 1998 and 2004," Sibal was quoted saying by the Press Trust of India.
Meanwhile, Sibal also tried to recall the BJP leaders' jibes on CAG reports in the past. "It is time to refresh Jaitley's memory," HRDA minister said.
He hark-backed to Jaitley's previous remarks on the CAG report with regards to the controversial coffins deal in 2001.
Jaitley cited that the CAG had "acted on hearsay and not on facts."
Sibal's remarks came against the backdrop of BJP slamming Prime Minister Manmohan Singh's statement on the CAG report on the coal blocks allocation. The BJP leaders said that the Prime Minister's take on the government audit report was an "attack on the constitutional authority."
Sibal accused the BJP of racking up the coal allocation issue in a desperate bid to come to power before the 2014 Lok Sabha elections.
The main opposition BJP has been stalling the proceeding of the Parliament since last week, with the party members creating uproars demanding the resignation of Prime Minister based on CAG report.
The oppositional leaders are not ready for discussion, saying that talks will only put a lid on the matter.
