20k ? 60k ? or is it 176k crores ?

[Sachinism]

India mobile licence sale lost billions, auditors say India's former telecommunications minister Andimuthu Raja undersold mobile phone licences worth billions of dollars, federal auditors say. Their report to parliament says rules were flouted in the 2008 sale of second-generation (2G) spectrum. Licences in the lucrative market had been sold at "unbelievably low prices" - the loss to the government could be as high as $39bn, the report said. Mr Raja resigned over the weekend, denying any wrongdoing. The former communications and information technology minister said he wanted "to avoid embarrassment to the government" and allow parliament - which has been in uproar - to function normally. He is accused of issuing the licences on a "first-come, first-served" basis instead of auctioning them. An auction of 3G bandwidth in May ended up reaping $15bn, twice the sum expected. Mr Raja was quoted by the Indian media on Tuesday as saying that the government's position on the matter had been filed in an affidavit before the Supreme Court - and that he could not comment any further as the case was sub judice. Ineligible companies There are about half a billion mobile phone subscribers in India, the world's fastest growing mobile market. The 96-page Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) report said that the sale of the licences was undertaken "in an arbitrary, unfair and inequitable manner" by Mr Raja's department, which it said had favoured a select group of companies. It is accused of not only ignoring the advice of Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on the sale - but also the advice of the ministries of finance, law and justice. The CAG said the loss to the government could reach $39bn, but stressed that any figure was speculative because it was based on the sector's future growth. It said that Mr Raja's ministry "brushed aside" rules while handing out the licences and that some operators did not qualify to bid for the contracts. "We have worked out a presumptive loss. There is a loss that cannot be denied," deputy CAG Rekha Gupta told a news conference after the watchdog lodged its report with parliament. She said that 85 of the 122 licences issued in 2008 were found to have been won by ineligible companies. Correspondents say that the row is one of India's biggest corruption scandals in the Congress-led government's six years in power. They say that while it has damaged the ruling party's image, it is unlikely to threaten the government's survival. http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-south-asia-11764415

[Roshanrocks]

39 billion $$$$ :yikes:

[urbestfriend]

http://www.indiancricketfans.com/showthread.php?t=247741

[Sir john]

very old news, i am Reading this news from last year. but govt take very late action against raja.

[IKnowU]

With only 2G network......the telecoms advertise like mad dogs..........imagine with new features 3G networks and the amount of dogfights you will see on tv between the telecoms.

[yoda]

i dont trust any politicians from tamil nadu.Congres better win more seats next election and dump these idiots or have a better leash on them.

yea politicians from the rest of the country are all noble souls. :giggle: yes our gaize can go toe to toe with anyone on the planet as far as corruption is concerned, but let's face it, we probably have about a gazillion scams going on in the country right now in varying corners. some of the notable recent ones are the kalmadi and co. CWG scam and the reddy brothers' mining scam.

[Nova]

News is coming out that Manmohan Singh was in it? http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/2G-spectrum-scam-Raja-had-free-run-with-PM-consent/articleshow/6950576.cms These guys don't even know how to do corruption properly. They should have increased the sale price of the licenses a little bit more and then distributed the extra dough among others including the finance ministry. Ek ko nahi mila toh doosra bhaunkne laga. :phehehe:

[achilles]

News is coming out that Manmohan Singh was in it? http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/2G-spectrum-scam-Raja-had-free-run-with-PM-consent/articleshow/6950576.cms These guys don't even know how to do corruption properly. They should have increased the sale price of the licenses a little bit more and then distributed the extra dough among others including the finance ministry. Ek ko nahi mila toh doosra bhaunkne laga. :phehehe:

Oh My. Mr.Clean's image is going for a toss. I think he might resign.

[Clarke]

Oh My. Mr.Clean's image is going for a toss. I think he might resign.

Nope, not gonna happen. He's got used to the culture of corruption and despite being at the top post, he will not take the battle to the allies or his party men. Every senior kangresi/ally must know about the big ticket items that are being handled by the central govt. The honest ones want to work with whatever they can and the corrupt ones will continue to make a mockery of law & order system.

[achilles]

Nope, not gonna happen. He's got used to the culture of corruption and despite being at the top post, he will not take the battle to the allies or his party men. Every senior kangresi/ally must know about the big ticket items that are being handled by the central govt. The honest ones want to work with whatever they can and the corrupt ones will continue to make a mockery of law & order system.

I think if the PM atleast offers to resign, it will be the biggest masterstroke played by the ruling party and might actually renew their image of being a clean party, in the face of the prime opposition, whose office-bearers continue to hold office despite being charged with major charges of corruption et al. Among the honest ones, I think Jairam Ramesh & Kapil Sibal are very honest and hardworking.

[Ram]

Anybody who thinks Manmohan Singh, of all the 6 billion and something people in this world, had something to do with a corruption scandal, they really need to have their heads examined.

[seedhi]

Anybody who thinks Manmohan Singh' date=' of all the 6 billion and something people in this world, had something to do with a corruption scandal, they really need to have their heads examined.[/quote']He was aware of corruption going on right under his nose, in his cabinet and he did nothing to stop it. Result: anything between 50k to 175k crore loss to nation. Not for nothing has our Supreme Court asked him to file an affidavit to explain his actions. I am sure more is going to tumble out soon. He is a modern day Dhritrashtra.

[kabira]

Anybody who thinks Manmohan Singh' date=' of all the 6 billion and something people in this world, had something to do with a corruption scandal, they really need to have their heads examined.[/quote'] definately Manmohan singh is clean politician, but he has been quiet and doing nothing about it. The allegation against Raja are not new, I htink it surfaced year ago, but still nothing was done then.