The Hindu : Govt. pondering fresh rules for classifying sensitive files

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Sunday, Aug 17, 2003

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Govt. pondering fresh rules for classifying sensitive files

By Our Special Correspondent

NEW DELHI AUG. 16. The demand for tabling the Central Vigilance Commission (CVC) report on defence deals in Parliament and suggestions for a change in approach has set the Government thinking afresh on the rules for classifying sensitive documents.

With the Government insisting that it cannot hand over a `secret' CVC report to the Public Accounts Committee for its scrutiny, and the Opposition demanding its perusal, the deadlock persists.

However, highly-placed Government sources today indicated that the Defence Ministry was considering how a change could be effected in the rules to usher in greater transparency without compromising national security.

The sources maintained that the CVC report contained only references to two deals which were in the pipeline before the Kargil war and materialised much later.

It is also understood that the CVC was not likely to pursue further cases of defence deals referred to it by the Defence Minister, George Fernandes. Although there were reports that the CVC could not get access to the relevant files sought by it from the Ministry, the sources asserted that the Government was cooperating with the Commission.

Even during a recent meeting of Mr. Fernandes with the Central Vigilance Commissioner, P. Shankar, the institutional auditors did not complain of any lack of cooperation, the sources said.

Asserting that the Government was bound by rules in denying the PAC access to the `secret' CVC report, they said many service officers had been indicted and the Government was in the process of taking or had taken necessary action.

Endorsing the CVC judgment to classify its report as `secret', the sources said it was not a mere document containing information about `mistakes' in the procurement of defence materials, but there were inputs from the Central Bureau of Investigation, the Intelligence Bureau and `top-secret' files of the Defence Ministry.

The sources said that Mr. Fernandes had offered to show the CVC report to the PAC Chairman, Buta Singh, but the latter declined the offer. Reports that Mr. Fernandes had suggested that the Congress lift its boycott of the Minister in Parliament as a quid pro quo was termed as "rubbish".

During its scrutiny of the Comptroller and Auditor General's report, the PAC had examined several serving defence officers including the Vice- Chiefs of Staff and fielded over 160 questions regarding the 35 cases of purchases made in connecting with the Kargil war (`Operation Vijay'), the sources added.

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