BJP flays Cong for trying to 'weaken' CAG

Slamming Congress for trying to "weaken" Comptroller and Auditor General by making it a multi-member body, the Baratiya Janata Party on Monday warned that any such move would only 'boomerang' on the party.

"Whenever the Congress is in trouble or faces criticism, they try to weaken the institutions if they are constitutional bodies," senior BJP Leader M Venkaiah Naidu told reporters on Union Minister V Narayanasamy's remarks on CAG.

In an interview to PTI on Sunday, Narayanasamy had said a former CAG's suggestion for making the official auditor a multi-member body was under consideration.

"Now it is very clear that the Congress is not able to digest the independent and autonomous CAG and is going with the move to make CAG a multi-member body," he said.

Naidu alleged that the Congress had earlier tried to tarnish the image of CAG in the wake of observations damning the UPA regime over wrongful allocation of coal blocks.

"They did the same thing even in 1980s when CAG looked into Bofors contract and HDW Submarine deals. They quashed the locus standi and auditing methods. They even criticised CAG on 2G spectrum report and declared that there was no loss," he said.

"Congress has forgotten that its stock crashed after it resorted to similar CAG bashing in 1989. Now the same thing will be repeated as and when elections are held," he said.

Naidu said BJP would be meeting on eve of Parliament winter session beginning on November 22 to discuss the issue.

Naidu said supersession of Judges, appointing their own "favourites" to the Election Commission or the CVC was nothing new to Congress. "Now this threat of active consideration of making the CAG a multi-member body."

"This is a clear attempt to muzzle the present incumbent and thereby weakening the institution. They have the track record of destroying the institutions from time to time," he said.

Warning the Congress, Naidu said, "If you go for any misadventure like the previous occasion, it is bound to boomerang on you and you will face the consequences".

Noting that CAG was not a "sarkari" organisation and it drew its power under the Constitution, he said such was the importance of CAG that its expenditure was met and charged on the Consolidated Fund of India and not on regular budget.

Taking on Prime Minister Manmohan Singh for his assertion that the observations of CAG were disputable and would be challenged before Public Accounts Committee, Naidu asked how the prime minister can say this when the matter is before the PAC.

"PAC is a committee set up by Parliament and its proceedings cannot be passed on to others," he said.

Replying to a question on allegations against Nitin Gadkari, Naidu said the BJP president has gone on record to say he was ready for any inquiry, contrary to what Congress has been doing of brushing aside all allegations. "This is how BJP is different from other parties".

Image: Senior BJP leader Venkaiah Naidu