A meeting of the Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC), which is examining the 2G scam, today saw heated exchanges as BJP members demanded summoning of Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and top PMO officials. The Congress countered it with their own list of witnesses that included all NDA Telecom Ministers.

There was a full blown political battle between the UPA and NDA members at the JPC meeting on the 2G scam on whether former telecom minister A Raja should be called to depose or not.

The UPA members say if Raja is called, then all the concerned ministers of the previous NDA government must also be called.

BJP leaders Yashwant Sinha and Jaswant Singh offered to step down from the JPC in order to depose before it. According to sources, Yashwant Sinha demanded that the Prime Minister and the Prime Minister’s Office should also be called to depose.

The Congress members say NDA’s prime minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee should be called too.

The JPC has decided to draw up list of the witnesses who could be called. The list has to be endorsed by all the members before anyone can be called.