JPC to have 30 members as govt relents

New Delhi, Feb 23 (PTI) The Indian government on
Wednesday conceded the Opposition demand for having 30 members
in the Joint Parliamentary Committee to probe the 2G spectrum
issue, giving up its earlier plan for a 21-member panel to
accommodate smaller parties like All India Anna Dravida
Munnettra Kazhagam (AIADMK), sources said.
AIADMK MP M Thambidurai met Leader of the Opposition
in Lok Sabha, the lower house of the Indian Parliament, Sushma
Swaraj and National Democratic Alliance working chairperson L
K Advani on Wednesday to request that the principal opposition
also take up its case for a 30-member JPC.
Both Advani and Swaraj conveyed these sentiments to
the government and suggested that a bigger JPC be formed.
"Even Parliamentary Standing Committee - which are
considered mini-JPCs - have 30 members. Moreover, the earlier
three JPCs on corruption have had 30 members," Swaraj told
reporters.
The government sources said, "We have decided to have
a 30-member panel to accommodate smaller parties which could
not have been represented in a 21-member JPC."
20 members of the JPC will be from the Lok Sabha while
10 will be from the Rajya Sabha, the upper house of the
Parliament. The seats given to each party are based on its
strength in the two Houses. In a 30 member JPC, 38 members in
the House entitle a party to one seat in the panel.
Congress Party will have eight members in the
Committee from the Lower House and three from the Upper House.
Bharatiya Janta Party will have four members from the
Lok Sabha in the committee, one of which it will give to ally
Shiv Sena which is not getting any representation. The main
opposition will also have two members from the Upper House.
The Dravida Munnettra Kazhagam (DMK) will have two
members and AIADMK will have one member in the panel.
Deputy Leader of BJP in Rajya Sabha S S Ahluwalia is
likely to be a member of the JPC, party sources said. The
party maintained it has not finalised the names yet.
Though the Motion for formation of JPC is not listed
in tomorrow's business in the Lok Sabha, sources said the
government will list it as a supplementary.
The Motion will be moved by Telecom Minister Kapil
Sibal at 2 PM in the Lok Sabha. This will be followed by a
four-hour discussion on the issue.
Sources said though the government is in favour of
setting the start of the Monsoon Session as the deadline for
the JPC to submit its report, the opposition is likely to
demand that "within a reasonable time" be stated instead.
Congress MP P C Chacko is still the front-runner for
the post of JPC chairperson.
Congress allys NCP and Trinamool Congress will have
one member each on the panel. BSP, JD(U) and Left parties will
have two each while SP and BJD will have one each. PTI RC
ANJ