The corruption issues in the previous regime are likely to haunt the Congress during the Monsoon Session of Parliament too, which begins here on Monday.
The Biju Janata Dal has given a notice for a short duration discussion on a CAG report on Ratna and R-Series Hydrocarbon Fields.
The report had said that the Centre deferred the award of the field resulting in loss of domestic production of 56 mbbls of crude oil (valued at ₹25,650 crore) and 920 mscm of natural gas (valued at ₹550 crore) during October 2005 to March 2015.
BJD leader in the Lok Sabha Bhartruhari Mahtab, who has moved the notice, said the Centre has to answer to the loss of money to the exchequer.
“More than 20 years have lapsed since the ONGC has been kept away from the Ratna and R-Series fields in the country’s west coast. It’s good that the Centre rectified its mistake and returned the blocks to ONGC this March. But, ONGC was asked to withdraw from the fields to facilitate certain private companies,” Mahtab said.
He said the CAG report had clearly flagged the manipulation in the case.
“It seems there has been a tacit understanding. No steps have so far been taken by the government to find the culprits who have been indulged in this type of corruption which led to the loss of government money in the last 20 years,” he said.
Mahtab, also a Public Accounts Committee member, had sought a reply from the Centre on the issue.
“The government’s reply says that they could not identify who was responsible for keeping the ONGC away. It is a stock reply of the bureaucracy and the person who has actually been responsible continued in a key post in the Ministry for 15 years and now he is a member of the Observer Research Foundation. So, that is a clear case,” Mahtab said, and added that he will raise such issues in Parliament.
Mahtab added that he has asked the BJP and non-UPA members in the Lok Sabha to join the discussion.
“A discussion on this will reveal this government’s approach to corruption,” Mahtab added. In the last Budget session, Mahtab had raised the delay in filing chargesheet in the Aircel-Maxis case irritating both the treasury and Opposition benches.
The matter led to disruption of proceedings in the Lok Sabha.
Royalty and cess Apart from lack of production, the CAG has also found that the Centre lost ₹1,000 crore of royalty and cess. It said that damage to the equipment in the field would require ₹1,085 crore of investment for repairs.
The CAG also said that delays in the decision-making show a ‘lack of seriousness’ in the approach of the Petroleum and Natural Gas Ministry.
It has also questioned ONGC’s decision to stop production.