TNN | Sep 12, 2011, 02.52AM IST
NAGPUR: The Centre for Protection of Rights (CPR) has urged Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to sack former civil aviation minister Praful Patel, who now holds heavy industries portfolio, from the Union cabinet. A similar demand has been raised by Peasants and Workers' Party after the Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) report squarely blamed the minister for pushing national carrier to bankruptcy during his seven year tenure in the ministry.
In a letter faxed to the prime minister on Friday, Gopal Kondawar, founder president of CPR, has urged to consider his complaint dated April 24 asking the PMO to order a CBI inquiry against Patel. "Our stand has only been vindicated by the CAG report tabled in Parliament on the concluding day of the monsoon session on Thursday. We strongly believe there was total mismanagement of the aviation ministry during Patel's tenure. Today Air India is finding it difficult to even pay salaries to staff. The CAG report has only confirmed it," said Kondawar.
"The CAG has raised serious doubts over Patels' decision of merging Indian Airlines and Air India. Members of parliament have also demanded a white paper and a JPC probe into the affairs of Air India whose accumulated losses had mounted to over Rs 10,000 crore in 2008-09," said Kondawar in his letter.
In a scathing indictment of UPA government, Patel and the civil aviation ministry, the CAG report had held that unholy haste was displayed and a large number of aircraft were purchased to cripple Air India. It also pulled up government for opening up the aviation sector too fast. The CAG raised questions on the decision to acquire 111 planes by Air India through debt and said it was "a recipe for disaster" and should have raised alarms in the government.
Terming the move for getting of a "large number" of planes as "risky", the CAG said the aircraft acquisition had "contributed predominantly" to the airline's massive debt liability of Rs 38,423 crore as on March 31 last year. The matter is fit for CBI probe and sacking of Patel from the Union cabinet, Kondawar said.
The CAG report called the merger of two erstwhile state-run carriers- Air India and Indian Airlines- as "ill-timed" and said that "the financial case for the merger was not adequately validated." Besides fleet acquisition, merger, huge debt burden, delay in joining the global airline grouping Star Alliance and its financial and operational performance were also blamed for the airlines' slide under Patel's tenure.
On Friday, city MP Vilas Muttemwar blamed Patel for failure of Mihan-SEZ project in Nagpur to take off. "Had Patel transferred the airport to state-controlled MADC well in time before the onset of global slowdown (in 2007), the project would have flourished. But he kept dilly-dallying for years and the transfer was effected when it was too late," said Muttemwar.
The once high flying NCP leader was conspicuous by his absence at the party's preparatory meeting for the local bodies' election held in city on Saturday. Meanwhile, Peasants and Workers' Party also demanded resignation of Patel. PWP which is part of the Republican, Left, Socialist grouping RDLF, has said that it would meet Anna Hazare and urge him to take up the issue of Patel's role in aviation ministry.
In a letter faxed to the prime minister on Friday, Gopal Kondawar, founder president of CPR, has urged to consider his complaint dated April 24 asking the PMO to order a CBI inquiry against Patel. "Our stand has only been vindicated by the CAG report tabled in Parliament on the concluding day of the monsoon session on Thursday. We strongly believe there was total mismanagement of the aviation ministry during Patel's tenure. Today Air India is finding it difficult to even pay salaries to staff. The CAG report has only confirmed it," said Kondawar.
"The CAG has raised serious doubts over Patels' decision of merging Indian Airlines and Air India. Members of parliament have also demanded a white paper and a JPC probe into the affairs of Air India whose accumulated losses had mounted to over Rs 10,000 crore in 2008-09," said Kondawar in his letter.
In a scathing indictment of UPA government, Patel and the civil aviation ministry, the CAG report had held that unholy haste was displayed and a large number of aircraft were purchased to cripple Air India. It also pulled up government for opening up the aviation sector too fast. The CAG raised questions on the decision to acquire 111 planes by Air India through debt and said it was "a recipe for disaster" and should have raised alarms in the government.
Terming the move for getting of a "large number" of planes as "risky", the CAG said the aircraft acquisition had "contributed predominantly" to the airline's massive debt liability of Rs 38,423 crore as on March 31 last year. The matter is fit for CBI probe and sacking of Patel from the Union cabinet, Kondawar said.
The CAG report called the merger of two erstwhile state-run carriers- Air India and Indian Airlines- as "ill-timed" and said that "the financial case for the merger was not adequately validated." Besides fleet acquisition, merger, huge debt burden, delay in joining the global airline grouping Star Alliance and its financial and operational performance were also blamed for the airlines' slide under Patel's tenure.
On Friday, city MP Vilas Muttemwar blamed Patel for failure of Mihan-SEZ project in Nagpur to take off. "Had Patel transferred the airport to state-controlled MADC well in time before the onset of global slowdown (in 2007), the project would have flourished. But he kept dilly-dallying for years and the transfer was effected when it was too late," said Muttemwar.
The once high flying NCP leader was conspicuous by his absence at the party's preparatory meeting for the local bodies' election held in city on Saturday. Meanwhile, Peasants and Workers' Party also demanded resignation of Patel. PWP which is part of the Republican, Left, Socialist grouping RDLF, has said that it would meet Anna Hazare and urge him to take up the issue of Patel's role in aviation ministry.
