Author: PTI
Publication: Daily News & Analysis
Date: August 26, 2011
URL: http://www.dnaindia.com/india/report_the-anna-saga-all-that-happened-today_1579843-all
The stand-off between government and Anna
Hazare today showed no signs of resolution, with Parliament failing to meet
the Gandhian's key demand for a discussion on Jan Lokpal Bill as major political
parties sparred on how it should be debated.
The Lok Sabha, which was to discuss Jan Lokpal
Bill and other civil society drafts, was caught in a political war between
the Congress and BJP on procedural issues and now the matter is expected to
come up tomorrow in a different form.
Differences cropped up in Team Anna over the
74-year-old Gandhian continuing his fast as his health caused considerable
worry to his doctors.
But he refused to end his 11-day hunger strike
demanding in a letter to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh that Parliament pass
a resolution, accepting three of his key demands --setting up Lokayuktas in
States, covering entire bureaucracy and citizens charter.
Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee, who ruled
out replacing the official Lokpal Bill, is now expected to make a statement
in Lok Sabha tomorrow which will form the basis for a discussion.
However, earlier in the day, opposition members
gave notices for a discussion on the Lokpal issue under a Rule that entails
voting while Congress members wanted it under a Rule that does not provide
for voting.
Opposition BJP foiled the ruling side's attempt
to get it discussed without voting that made the government to change its
strategy to go for a debate in a different form.
Team Anna, which was expecting a parliamentary
vote today, reacted sharply, saying that he would end his fast only if three
of demands are conceded or at least Jan Lokpal Bill be tabled in Parliament.
On another day of hectic consultations within
government and Congress party, Rahul Gandhi broke his silence and appeared
to be critical of Hazare's hunger strike to get his demands met though he
felt the Gandhian has helped people articulate their disillusionment with
corruption.
In a brief speech, Gandhi said democratic
processes should not be weakened by "individual dictates" which
could set dangerous precedent.
Though he maintained that Lokpal alone was
not enough to eradicate corruption, he favoured the ombudsman to be Constitutional
functionary accountable to Parliament, an idea that generated a lot of debate.
As the ruling and opposition were locked in
a confrontation leading to a brief adjournment of Lok Sabha, Speaker Meira
Kumar held discussions with leaders of both sides.
The principal Opposition maintained that either
the Prime Minister or leader of the house (Mukherjee) should make a statement
on which a discussion could take place or pass a resolution as demanded by
Hazare.
It was decided at the meeting that Mukherjee
will make a statement which will be followed by a discussion under a Rule
that does not entail voting. However, government sources did not rule out
voting on a substantive motion if situation demands.
Hazare himself wrote a letter to Prime Minister
Manmohan Singh, in which he said "my inner conscience tells me that if
there is a consensus on these proposals (three issues), then I will break
my fast."
He was conciliatory to the Prime Minister
on the issue of personal attacks on him, saying "if my or my colleagues'
words have hurt you or anybody else, I express my regrets. We don't want to
hurt anybody."
Mukherjee, who is the government's chief negotiator
with the civil society, expressed concern over Hazare's health and appealed
to him to end the fast.
However, he ruled out replacing the official
bill on Lokpal, saying the Standing Committee, which is considering it, can
suggest recommendations and it was for Parliament to either accept or reject
them.
He dismissed a suggestion that the government
has been boxed into a corner, saying sometimes some actions of the government
may not be liked by the people. "It is nothing new but the current agitation
is not good," he said.
Earlier, BJP accused the government of not
being serious about Lokpal Bill or Anna Hazare's fast as it was pressing for
a "casual" debate on such an important issue which could lead to
the end of the Gandhian's hunger strike.
"Parliamentary Affairs Minister PK Bansal
had said the discussion on the Lokpal Bill will only take place on Monday.
But to our utter surprise we got a call that Sandeep Dikshit (Cong MP) will
initiate the debate on Lokpal in five minutes. The government wanted a casual
debate on such an important and serious issue," leader of opposition
in Lok Sabha Sushma Swaraj said.
The BJP members in Lok Sabha objected, saying
they were not given adequate notice and forced adjournment of the house.
The government had formulated a resolution
which said -- "The document 'Jan Lokpal Bill' drafted by members of the
civil society under the leadership of Anna Hazare as also the proposals by
prominent civil society groups and eminent citizens for addressing issues
of corruption".
However, when this was presented to Team Anna
it did not agree and sent its own resolution which said --
"The house resolves that a Lokpal Bill
which will set up an independent Lokpal institution be enacted quickly to
effectively deal with the prevailing rampant corruption in the country.
"The house further resolves that such
law would cover all levels of government servants. Such law would also provide
a framework for setting up of similar Lokayuktas in the states and would also
include effective provisions for redressal of grievances which affect the
common people in country."
