Union Minister for Parliamentary Affairs Pawan Kumar Bansal has said that the Prime Minister is keen that his office is brought under the purview of Lokpal. He said in Chandigarh yesterday that Dr. Manmohan Singh upholds principles of integrity in public life. Referring to the report of Parliament's Standing Committee on Lokpal bill, Mr Bansal said all concerns will be addressed.
On protests by some parties on Lokpal bill, he said, that they just want to show they are against corruption. Mr Bansal added that their double standards are not acceptable. He also said there is need to bring amendments in the existing laws on corruption. Mr. Bansal said the Centre is committed to pass the Lokpal bill in this session itself.
On Anna's fast in Delhi, Mr Bansal said, Anna is not the only person fighting against corruption.
Anna Hazare appealed to opposition parties to join his agitation for a strong Lokpal if they do not have the numbers to correct the government. He accused Congress General Secretary, Rahul Gandhi of being a person behind watering down the Parliament Standing Committee report on Lokpal.
Participating in a open debate in New Delhi where Anna observed day-long fast to press for a strong Lokpal, opposition parties backed the Team Anna's demand to include Prime Minister and lower bureaucracy under the ambit of Lokpal. Some parties suggested Team Anna to be flexible and not expect every point raised by it to be accepted.
Leaders of BJP, CPI(M), CPI, JD(U), Akali Dal, SP, TDP and BJD participated in the public debate on Lokpal at Jantar Mantar where Anna Hazare was sitting on a day-long protest against Parliamentary Standing Committee's report on Lokpal Bill.
Leader of Opposition in the Rajya Sabha Arun Jaitely said BJP will oppose the recommendations of the Parliamentary Panel. He added that the recommendations do not reflect the sense of the House after the debate on the issue in the last session. He called for taking the CBI out of the government's hands.
CPI leader A B Bardhan urged Team Anna to adopt flexibility in their approach for a strong and effective Lokpal. He said Team Anna should have patience to listen to everybody's view point. He added that Judiciary should be kept out of the ambit of Lokpal.
CPI(M) politburo member Brinda Karat wanted big corporate houses to be brought under Lokpal. She also advocated for MPs to be under the ombudsman's ambit. Supporting the demands, JDU chief Sharad Yadav demanded a special session of Parliament to have a thorough debate on the issue.
Congress has accused Team Anna of misleading the nation and insulting the prestige of Parliament. Talking to reporters in New Delhi, Party Spokesman Rashid Alvi said that the discussion on Lokpal bill will be taken up in Parliament and nobody is above Constitution.
Stating that Anna Hazare has the right to protest, Mr Alvi said by attempting to mailgn the image of UPA Chairperson Sonia Gandhi and Congress General Secretary Rahul Gandhi, Hazare is only trying to politicise the issue. Mr Alvi said that Congress party has always worked to eradicate corruption, but he added that a law can only be made by Parliament and not by holding protests.
