Vinod Rai: The Uncaged CAG

What made Vinod Rai the government’s bête-noire despite being appointed with the PM's consent?

WrittenBy:Somi Das
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What’s with the all the chatter about Vinod Rai’s retirement from the office of Comptroller and Auditor General? Well, it’s because it was Vinod Rai who made the office of Comptroller And Auditor General, popularly known as CAG, a topic of dining table discussion. Earlier, the CAG was treated as an appendage of the Public Accounts Committee (PAC) which studies the CAG report and is headed by the leader of the Opposition. But Vinod Rai made sure that as long as he was at the helm of affairs, the government wouldn’t escape scrutiny for its financial dealings. Be it 2G, CWG or the mining scam, Rai’s figures and findings always put the government in the dock. During his tenure, the Opposition enjoyed the luxury of sitting back and using his reports to put the government on the mat.

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So he basically became a constant headache for the government?  You could say that. Rai didn’t confine himself to the so-called mandate of handling the government’s balance sheets. He made the bold decision of targeting not only government expenditure but also the corporate-politician nexus involved in the allocation of natural resources. He took a range of steps to make CAG reports more accessible and comprehensible to the common man, especially through Noddy Books. The Noddy Books are miniature versions of the massive CAG reports on the scams that rocked UPA II, written lucidly in 18-20 pages. Rai also appointed a media officer, BS Chauhan, in 2010 to increase the CAG’s interactions with the media. In fact, while bidding goodbye, he thanked the media for standing by him and helping his office function independently.

And the government allowed him to function without restraint? In his farewell speech he had said that the role of the CAG is adversarial in nature, so it wasn’t possible for him to praise the government.  Many of his critics – both from the media as well as politicians – have argued that he had no business questioning government policies as he had done in the case of the first-come-first-serve policy adopted by the government in allocating 2G spectrum. He’s also been criticised for taking on the government regarding presumptive losses incurred on 2G allocation as against the auction of 3G. They’ve even blamed him for causing policy paralysis and deliberately leaking parts of his reports to the media, before they were tabled in Parliament. The government couldn’t have been too pleased with all the muck being thrown up by the CAG, given that the CAG is chosen by the President in consultation with the Prime Minister.

So, who were the victims of his stinging reports? Well, thanks to the CAG reports, former Telecom Minister A Raja and several top executives of telecom companies have been jailed in the 2G scam. The coal block allocation scam which the chief auditor pegged at Rs 1.86 lakh crore saw the involvement of Congress MP Vijay Dadra. After his CWG report, MP and former IOA chief Suresh Kalmadi was thrown behind the bars. However, more than anyone else, his reports have destroyed Prime Minister Manmohan Singh’s credibility and have become a constant reason for the Opposition to demand our PM’s resignation.

Talk about biting the hand that feeds you. Yeah, his five years have been marked by frequent face-offs with the government. Ironically, Rai’s retirement day coincided with the day UPA completed four years in office.

The government though, has not taken things silently. Information and Broadcasting Minister, Manish Tewari ridiculed the CAG’s report on the 2G scam and asked Rai to explain the origin of the phrase “presumptive loss”. Just a day before Rai retired, Tewari took potshots at him saying that now Rai would have enough time to ponder over his report and once he retires he should have a full-fledged public debate on his 2G report.

Telecom Minister (now also holding the Law portfolio) Kapil Sibal has time and again insulted Rai at different forums. Sibal called the report a myth and accused Rai of “sensationalising” the 2G scam loss figure and subsequently “killing the hen (the telecom sector) that laid golden eggs”. Rai replied to Sibal’s scathing attacks not just with wit, but in a recent interview to The Times of India said that he felt sorry for Kapil Sibal and company for coming up with the zero loss theory on 2G.

Aah, always nice to get in one last stab before leaving office. Yeah, even as he remits office he’s made sure that the CAG keeps pursuing not only the government’s financial bungling, but also exposes nepotism and faulty policies on allocation of natural resources. He’s also been amply backed by the Supreme Court. In response to a PIL filed by Arvind Gupta, arguing that the CAG reports on Coalgate, airport privatisation and the power sector went beyond its Constitutional mandate, the apex court clearly stated – “Do not confuse the constitutional office of CAG with that of an auditor of a company or corporation”. In its pronouncement, the Supreme Court also made it clear to the government that the CAG was free to venture into policy matters and the government shouldn’t treat the body as its “munimji”.

Now that Rai’s retired, who’s his successor? Of all the CAGs who have occupied the 153-year-old office, it’s Rai’s voice which has caused colossal damage to the ruling government. Shashi Kant Sharma has been appointed as his successor, much to the ire of the BJP who’ve expressed reservations over his appointment. Sharma used to be Defence Secretary from July 14, 2011 to May 22, 2013. He has experience in looking at scams going by the fact that he twice approved the purchase of Augusta Westland for VVIP use – in what has come to be known as Choppergate. A case which is currently being investigated by the CBI.

According to the BJP, there could be a case of “conflict of interest” as he will be auditing defence deals in which he might have had a role as Defence Secretary. Eminent lawyer, Prashant Bhushan is considering challenging his appointment in court. His contention is that the appointment has been made without taking into consideration the guidelines of institutional integrity laid down by the Supreme Court while quashing Chief Vigilance Commissioner PJ Thomas’ appointment. Sharma’s appointment has sparked off a debate on how the CAG is appointed without a proper selection committee or pre-defined eligibility criteria.

Do Watch: The Hand That Rocks The Cradle

Don’t Watch: The Good Son

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