Home Minister P
Chidambaram was on Friday appointed the head of the Empowered Group of
Ministers (EGoM) on spectrum auction that was reconstituted after
Agriculture Minister Sharad Pawar declined the job fearing
controversies.
Chidambaram, a former Finance Minister, will head the seven-member group that also includes Defence Minister A K Antony, Telecom Minister Kapil Sibal, I&B Minister Ambika Soni, Law Minister Salman Khurshid, Minister of State in Prime Minister's Office V Narayanasamy and Planning Commission Deputy Chairman Montek Singh Ahluwalia.
Chidambaram, a former Finance Minister, will head the seven-member group that also includes Defence Minister A K Antony, Telecom Minister Kapil Sibal, I&B Minister Ambika Soni, Law Minister Salman Khurshid, Minister of State in Prime Minister's Office V Narayanasamy and Planning Commission Deputy Chairman Montek Singh Ahluwalia.
The
ministerial panel is to decide on the minimum or the base price for
auction of telecom spectrum vacated from cancellation of 122 licenses by
the Supreme Court earlier this year.
Pawar,
who earlier this week recused himself from chairing the group fearing
he would be dragged into controversies, is not a member of the
reconstituted EGoM, sources said.
Sources said no date for the meeting of the EGoM has been fixed yet.
The
EGoM was last week reconstituted after Pranab Mukherjee, who was
heading it, resigned as Finance Minister to contest the Presidential
elections.
Reacting
to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh's decision, BJP spokesperson Ravi
Shankar Prasad said it was not only regrettable and condemnable but
downright scandalous.
"The
Prime Minister is not concerned about propriety," he said while his
party colleague Yashwant Sinha was sarcastic about the appointment.
However,
Congress spokesperson Renuka Chaudhary strongly defended the decision
saying opposition allegations against Chidambaram were not
substantiated. The government has to govern and cannot be held hostage
to opposition allegations.
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