The reconstituted PAC meets; BJP objects to panel taking suo motu issues

Public Accounts Committee Chairman KC Venugopal chaired the PAC meeting in Delhi on May 22, 2026. | Photo credit: ANI

The reconstituted Public Accounts Committee (PAC) met on Friday (May 22, 2026) during which BJP members objected to PAC chairman KC Venugopal taking up certain items for suo motu examination by the committee.

Subjects include policy reforms in banking, insurance and energy.

BJP MP Nishikant Dubey is said to have objected to the PAC taking up these issues on its own. However, Mr. Venugopal reportedly gave preference when BJP leader Murli Manohar Joshi headed the parliamentary panel and took up the issues suo motu.

“The Speaker has made it clear that deciding which subjects to take up is the committee’s prerogative and cited precedent for support,” an opposition member, who declined to be named, told The Hindu.

Despite differences on the suo motu subjects, sources said the meeting was very cordial and members across party lines congratulated Mr. Venugopal for the way he conducted the PAC proceedings.

Big backlog

The panel also expressed concern over the backlog of Action Notes (ATNs) and the major shortfall in the Para Audit Monitoring System, a web-based platform created by the Comptroller and Auditor General (C&AG) to track and monitor the follow-up of relevant ministries on audit observations of irregularities, procedural violations, financial lapses or inefficient use of public funds.

“He chaired the first meeting of the Public Accounts Committee (2026-27). The previous PAC (2025-26) successfully presented 26 reports to Parliament. The large backlog in the Audit Section Monitoring System is a cause for serious concern as more than 1,500 ATNs are pending before various Ministries/Departments. Due to the complex nature of faster public expenditure from C&AG to Audit, there is a need of the hour in our country,” he said. Mr. Venugopal in a post on X.

Comptroller and Auditor General of India K. Sanjay Murthy was also present at the first meeting of the reconstituted PAC for 2026-27.

The PAC is a parliamentary committee that examines the reports of the Comptroller and Auditor General and then submits its own report.

Published – 22 May 2026 22:26 IST