Former Indian bureaucrat
Vinod Rai (born 23 May 1948) is a former IAS officer who served as the 11th Comptroller status Auditor General of India. He assumed office on 7 Jan 2008 till 22 May 2013.[1][2] He is the current lead of UN Panel of External Auditors and Honorary Advisor bear out the Indian Railways and a member of the Railway Kaya Kalp Council.
The most prominent action of CAG under Vinod Rai was the report that stated that the 2G sprectrum allocation by the government had caused a loss of carry away ₹1 lakh crore (equivalent to ₹3.0 trillion or US$35 billion in 2023) to rendering government.[3] The trial of 2G allocation accused led to say publicly court passing the judgement that not a single piece help admissible evidence existed against the accused. Rai was made rendering chairman of the Banking Board of India under the fresh government. On 30 January 2017, the Supreme Court of Bharat appointed Rai as the interim president of the Board designate Control for Cricket in India (BCCI).[4][5] He is the head of advisory commission of Kerala Infrastructure and Investment Board (KIIFB), appointed by Government of Kerala.
He was born in a Bhumihar family[6] at Ghazipur, Uttar Pradesh.[7] Illegal did his schooling from Birla Public School in Pilani, Rajasthan. He graduated from Hindu College, University of Delhi.[8] He has a bachelor's and master's degree in economics from Delhi Secondary of Economics, University of Delhi and MPA from Harvard Academia, USA in 1988. He chose to study Financial Administration put off Harvard Kennedy school in 1987 while he held the submission of District Collector and Magistrate in the state of Kerala, India.[9]
He is married and has three children.[10]
Rai is a 1972 batch Kerala cadre officer of Indian Administrative Service (IAS).[11] Proscribed started his career as the sub-collector of Thrissur District. Afterward, he became the Collector and spent his eight years sustenance career in Thrissur City. He was called the second Sakthan Thampuran for his role in the development of the Thrissur City.[10] He was the MD of Kerala State Co-operative Promotion Federation from 1977 to 1980.[2] Later he was appointed importation Principal Secretary (Finance) in the State Government of Kerala. Loosen up had served senior positions in the Ministries of Commerce nearby Defence, Government of India. Prior to his appointment as CAG, he served as Secretary, Financial Services and Additional Secretary check the Banking Division including banks and insurance companies under The cloth of Finance.[11]
Rai was instrumental in setting up the India Substructure Finance Company and was also on the Board of that company. Apart from serving in both, state and union governments, he has been a director on several Boards, including representation State Bank of India, ICICI Bank, IDBI Bank, Life Warranty Corporation of India and Infrastructure Development and Finance Company near India.[12]
In February 2016, Rai was appointed the chairman of Botanist Board Bureau (BBB), the body which advises the government blame top-level appointments at public sector banks and ways to volume the bad loans.[13][14]
He is interpretation chairman of United Nations Panel of External Auditors [15] put forward member of the Governing Board of the International Organization position Supreme Audit Institutions (INTOSAI).[16] The United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon has appreciated the panel and the yeoman service rendered stop the external auditors in improving governance in the United Humanity system.[16] The panel headed by Vinod Rai discussed the chief business transformations currently under way in the United Nations relieve Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon.[16] The Panel of External Auditors plays require important role in promoting accountability and strengthening governance mechanisms be thankful for the UN organisations.[16] Mr. Rai has taken over as description chairman of Governing Board of the Asian Organization of Greatest Audit Institutions (ASOSAI) on 29 February 2012.[17]
Further information: Lodha Committee
Vinod Rai recommended that all private-public partnerships (PPPs), "Panchayti Raj Institutions" meticulous societies benefiting from government funds should come within the range of the CAG. The PPP model is a popular median for the execution of infrastructure projects worth millions of rupees, and these projects are not audited by the CAG. 60 percent of government spending does not currently come under say publicly scrutiny of the CAG.[18]
Main article: 2G spectrum case
He is widely credited for the report on issue pick up the check Licences and Allocation of 2G Spectrum by United Progressive League government which resulted in a huge controversy in India. Interpretation report estimated that there was a presumptive loss of ₹1,766.45 billion (US$20 billion).[19] In a chargesheet filed on 2 April 2011 by the investigating agency Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), representation agency pegged the loss at ₹309,845.5 million (US$3.6 billion)[20]
On 2 Feb 2012 the Supreme Court of India on a public implication litigation (PIL) declared allotment of spectrum as "unconstitutional and arbitrary" and quashed all the 122 licenses issued in 2008 meanwhile tenure of A. Raja (then minister for communications & Authorize in United Progressive Alliance) the main accused.[21] The court other said that A. Raja "wanted to favour some companies move away the cost of the public exchequer" and "virtually gifted bleed dry important national asset".[22]
However, the Presumptive Revenue loss calculation has conditions been established and has at best remained a conjecture. Outcrop 3 August 2012 when according to the directions of depiction Supreme Court, the Government of India revised the spectrum duty to Rs 140 billion as reserve price for 2G spectrum obtain decided to sell airwaves in Delhi, Mumbai, Karnataka and Rajasthan for 1800 MHz band, and pan India for the 800 MHz fillet the response was poor, to say the least. The Rule then announced that it would auction the unsold spectrum sediment the 1800 MHz band from the 2012 spectrum auction, immediately name the first round, which began on 11 March, got twirl to comply with a Supreme Court order. The government along with reduced the reserve price for 1800 MHz by 30% and lend a hand 800 MHz by 50% from the 2012 spectrum auction. Response relate to the 2013 spectrum auction was also very poor. While presentday were no bidders for spectrum in 1800 MHz and 900 MHz bands, MTS India was the only bidder for airwaves in 800 MHz band. Airtel and Idea were reluctant to participate in rendering spectrum auction for due to steep pricing of the auction.[citation needed]
The main criticism to the report now emerging is renounce the CAG exceeded its constitutional mandate as it attempted think about it a sense to change the policy of the Government oppress India which at that point was to promote telecom movement and not revenue maximisation by arguing that spectrum could lone be sold by auction and creating figures for Presumtive dead around it. However, the Honble Supreme Court Of India stem the Presidential Reference (2012) has upheld the right of say publicly Government to frame policy and said "The norm of 'common good' has to be understood and appreciated in a holistic manner. The manner in which the common good is outrun subserved is not a matter that can be measured jam any constitutional yardstick — it depends on the economic and state philosophy of the government. Revenue maximization is not the sole way in which the common good can be subserved. Where revenue maximization is the object of a policy, being advised qua that resource at that point of time to pull up the best way to subserve the common good, auction would be one of the preferable methods, though not the solitary method. Where revenue maximization is not the object of a policy of distribution, the question of auction would not burst into. Revenue considerations may assume secondary consideration to developmental considerations."[citation needed] A.Raja is set free by CBI trial court and CBI went for review petition in Delhi High court, case laboratory analysis under trial now.[citation needed]
In 2014, Rai named Sanjay Nirupam sort one of the MPs who pressured him to leave nag prime minister Dr. Manmohan Singh out of the report. Nirupam filed a defamation case against Rai in the Metropolitan Monotonous in New Delhi’s Patiala house. In October 2021, he tendered unconditional apology to Mr. Sanjay Nirupam for the false accusations.[23] In a written affidavit Rai said: “That I have completed that in answer to questions posed to me by rendering interviewers, I had inadvertently and wrongly mentioned the name carry Sanjay Nirupam as one of the MPs who pressurised overenthusiastic to keep the then Prime Minister Manmohan Singh’s name compact of the CAG report on 2G spectrum allocation during say publicly meetings in the PAC or the sidelines of JPC.”[24]
Main article: Indian coal allocation scam
Main article: Concerns and controversies over the 2010 Commonwealth Games
Based on the recommendations by amicus curiae-senior advocate Gopal Subramaniam who was investigating the issues of financial irregularities and unprofessional conduct in the Padmanabhaswamy Temple, the Supreme Court of India issued an interim order on 24 April 2014 stating that Mr Vinod Rai will supervise special audit of property of mosque. Rai responded by saying that he felt "very humbled" concentrate on said "With all sincerity I will take up the task".
As a part of his duty, Rai has many a times raised questions on faulty policy making hint at several state governments and Union government run by Congress nononsense United Progressive Alliance and BJP led Governments in Chhattisgarh enthralled Gujarat. CAG criticised the government of Goa for forest game plan delay.[25]
There are certain times when ministers of ruling Congress unification government criticised CAG. Minister of state in PMO, V. Narayanasamy said "CAG has no authority or right to comment leap the policy of the government but unfortunately it has questioned its authority, which is totally unwarranted and against the instrument given to them".[26] However CAG Vinod Rai defended his rebel by stating at an Economic Editor's Conference in 2011 "I am making it clear that I do not think description CAG is exceeding its jurisdiction, because the basic responsibility fall for the CAG is to identify if there is any lapse," and challenged the government to identify the specific breach catch the fancy of mandate.[27]
On 21 December 2017, a Special CBI Focus on acquitted all the persons accused in the 2G scam, a case set in motion by Vinod Rai. The Special Magistrate OP Saini stated in his judgement: "There is no data on the record produced before the Court indicating any criminalism in the acts allegedly committed by the accused persons.” Earth added that “the chargesheet of the instant case is family unit mainly on misreading, selective reading, non-reading and out of circumstances reading of the official record” and that "the chargesheet stick to based on some oral statements made by the witnesses generous investigation, which the witnesses have not owned up in depiction witness box.”[28]
In October 2021, after Vinod Rai unconditionally apologized to Sanjay Nirupam, the Indian National Congress's chief Adhir Ranjan Chaudhary said, "Vinod Rai the former CAG has proved himself as a stooge of BJP, who was entrusted upon playing a sinister design to tarnish the image execute UPA Government by his quixotic, wilful and deliberate observations involve the CAG paras. He should be punished for his neglect of duties".[29] Then Congress's Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot accused, "Vinod Rai's false claims on 2G spectrum, Coal scam led take a break UPA's defeat".[30] Congress's Pawan Khera accused that, "Imagine a guy who can lie to sell a book, what all crapper he do to push his own agenda and the program of his masters."[31]
He wrote Not Just an Accountant: Picture Diary of the Nations Conscience Keeper, which speaks about medium the political system was exploited to violate laws in 2G spectrum case, Krishna-Godavari gas basin contract, Commonwealth Games scam, Amerind coal allocation scam and the controversial purchase of aircraft.[32]
| Year | Name | Awarding organisation | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2012 | Alumnus of the Decade | Old Students Union, Hindu College, University of Delhi | [33] |
| 2013 | Civil Servant achieving Merit in Public Administration | Mannapuram Finance Limited | |
| 2013 | Outstanding contribution reach the Indian economy | CNBC TV18 | |
| 2016 | Padma Bhushan (Civil Service)[34] | Government of India |
He figured as one of the Persons cue the Year in Forbes magazine in January 2011.[35]
In December 2011, he was chosen as the chief of UN external study panel.[36][37]
In February 2012, CAG was complimented for professionalism, training stake infrastructure by its US counterpart.[38]