The Public Accounts Committee (PAC), which has summoned RBI Governor Urjit Patel and top finance ministry officials over demonetisation, is likely to consult former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and former Finance Minister P Chidambaram in their capacity as ace economists to study the impact of the current government’s decision.
“We may call Dr Manmohan Singh not as a former Prime Minister but as an expert in economics,” PAC Chairman KV Thomas told Outlook.
On summoning the Prime Minister to appear before PAC, Thomas said the committee has the precedent of calling cabinet ministers.
When the 2G scandal broke out and then Prime Minister Manmohan Singh expressed his willingness to appear before PAC, then finance minister Pranab Mukherjee said there were no rules for a parliamentary committee to summon a Minister but only precedent. The precedents were: then agriculture minister C Subramaniam was summoned by PAC in relation to a CAG report in 1996, and then minister (of finance Manmohan Singh) was summoned by Joint Parliamentary committee which probed the Harshad Mehta scandal.
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Thomas’ warning that it could summon Narendra Modi to appear before the committee had invited sharp reaction from the BJP.
Manmohan Singh and Chidambaram have been highly critical of the NDA government’s decision to withdraw high denomination currency notes. Manmohan Singh recently warned that the worse of the demonetisation impact is yet to come, while Chidambaram has criticised the move saying that the advisers of the notes ban needed elementary education in economics.
PAC has also sent a questionnaire on the notes ban to Reserve Bank governor Urjit Patel and top finance ministry officials. A reply from them is awaited by January 20.
Asked what will be the implication if the government- and not RBI- took the decision on demonetisation contrary to the statement by minister Piyush Goyal in Parliament, Thomas said“PAC will work as per the tradition it has been following over the years”.
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Asked about the BJP member Nishikant Dubey writing to Speaker opposing Thomas’ statement on summoning Modi, he said, he had only spoken to media about the powers of PAC, adding, the PAC will follow its procedures on the matter.
