Congress on Friday made an attempt to draw the opposition into ending the deadlock over a joint parliamentary committee probe into the 2G scam.

Congress spokesperson Jayanthi Natarajan told the assembled media persons at a press conference in the city that the party was open to the idea of a parliamentary discussion on forming a JPC.

Natarajan said that the all party meeting called by Pranab Mukherjee before the budget session starts will be an attempt to end the deadlock which washed out the winter session of Parliament last year with no legislative business being transacted.

Opposition combines like the Left and the NDA have stolidly put their weight behind the demand for a JPC probe, but the UPA-led government refuses to allow a resolution on the same being tabled.

While Natarajan denied any change in the Congress stand of not allowing a resolution on the JPC outright, her statement could be an indication of a softened party stand on the issue.

"We call upon all parties to compromise and cooperate to find out a way so that the budget session is conducted smoothly. Our stand on JPC remains the same, but we will vote upon it," she said.

Both the opposition and the ruling party had drawn a lot of flak from the public and the civil society for the washout of the winter session last year which was arguably the worst showing in the history of Parliament.

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Raja's arrest bolsters demand for JPC: Yechury

Kolkata: The CPI-M today said its demand for a JPC probe into the 2G spectrum scam had become all the more important with the arrest of former Telecom minister A Raja and the party stressed for a new legislation in Parliament to curb corruption.

"It is now quite clear and evident that a JPC is all the more required now to go into the 2G scam," CPI-M) politburo member Sitaram Yechury told reporters at the airport here.

Yechury, however, made it clear that his party would not favour a joint movement with the BJP to demand for the JPC.

"There is no question of going along with the BJP for the JPC demand. BJP is vocal about corruption in New Delhi. But, they are silent about corruption in Karnataka where it is in power. We demand investigation into all corrupt practices," he said.

"It amounts to cutting the branch of a tree sitting over it," he quipped.

Yechury also said none other than Parliament could enact a new legislation to curb corruption.

"This cannot be done by either the Supreme Court or the government and such a new law will be beneficial for the next generation of people," he said, adding corruption had taken place in Karnataka and New Delhi.

Asked about A Raja's arrest, he said Raja should have been arrested before. "The arrest was delayed by the Centre," he said.

(PTI)