Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee is scheduled to meet with Prime Minister Manmohan Singh here, amidst a spiralling controversy over the unfolding 2G spectrum scandal that has pitted him against Home Minister P. Chidambaram.
Mr. Mukherjee will arrive in New York late on Saturday (U.S. time), and meet with the Prime Minister before leaving for India on an Air India flight.
Government sources said Mr. Mukherjee was due to travel to New York on his way home prior to the breaking scandal, but had rescheduled his flight there from Washington DC to facilitate the meeting with the PM.
The meeting follows the disclosure of a note authored by Mr. Mukherjee's Ministry, which suggests that Mr Chidambaram, as Finance Minister, failed to bring adequate pressure to bear for an auction of scarce spectrum.
However, speaking to journalists after his address at the United Nations General Assembly, Dr. Singh suggested the meeting would not centre on the unfolding 2G scandal. “There are a of things happening in the world; there is a global economic crisis, so he would like to brief me.”
The Prime Minister was dismissive of Opposition calls for Mr. Chidambaram's resignation, saying it was their “business to oppose or depose the government.” “Why should I be bothered,” he asked.
