Pointing out some "anomalies and legal inconsistencies" in the Lokpal Act, the Central Bureau of Investigation has raised a question as to whether the entire probe agency will be divested of all powers if any of its officer was found guilty of corruption or tampering with evidence.
Leader of Opposition in Rajya Sabha Arun Jaitley elaborates on why he thinks the final government draft of the Lokbal Bill is a flawed one.
The President's approval was required for the measure since the Lok Sabha made some amendments to The Lokpal and Lokayukta Bill, 2011 before its passage.
Rejecting allegations that the government sprung a surprise by referring the Lokpal bill to a select committee of the Rajya Sabha, Parliamentary Affairs Minister P K Bansal said political parties were consulted before taking the move.
Congress member of Parliament from Bareilly Praveen Singh Aron has submitted Anna Hazare's Jan Lokpal Bill for consideration before Parliament's Standing Committee which is examining the government's version of the legislation.
Hailing the Lokpal bill as the single most powerful anti-corruption law in independnent India, Congress on Thursday cautioned parties obstructing the legislation that they will face the anger of the people.
Team Anna on Thursday rejected the Lokpal bill describing it as "anti-people and dangerous" and demanded that a new bill be brought in Parliament that will make the Central Bureau of Investigation independent and decentralise the proposed anti-corruption body.
Calling corruption a "plague", Congress President Sonia Gandhi on Tuesday said the government was committed to eradicating it and hoped that the opposition will help in passage of anti-graft measures including Lokpal.
Questioning the impartiality of the parliamentary committee examining the Lokpal Bill, a leading citizens' forum has sought the reconstitution of the panel as a befitting response to unprecedented anti-corruption movement in our country.
Marumalarchi Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam leader Vaiko today criticised the United Progressive Alliance government for failure to pass Lokpal Bill in Rajya Sabha and opposed inclusion of Lokayukta in the legislation, saying it was an encroachment on the state's rights.
The much-awaited Lokpal Bill was on Tuesday taken up for consideration by the Lok Sabha on a stormy note with the Opposition demanding its withdrawal contending it was full of deficiencies, even as the government asserted that it had sought to strike a fine balance.
Contrary to Anna Hazare's view -- that Rahul Gandhi was behind the Standing Committee's decision to exclude the lower bureaucracy from the purview of Lokpal -- there are indications now that it may be Gandhi who may want their inclusion, says Neerja Chowdhury
With the government making a fresh bid to end the stalemate over Lokpal Bill, Congress top brass including Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and Sonia Gandhi held deliberations ahead of the all-party meeting on Friday.
Right to Information activist Arvind Kejriwal has been in the forefront of the massively publicised movement to demand a Lokpal Bill. A close associate of Gandhian Anna Hazare, Kejriwal has staunchly defended the movement and rebuffed many allegations made against civil society activists by the ruling Congress party. He has also taken on senior Congress leaders like Digvijaya Singh and Pranab Mukherjee who had taken pot shots at Hazare's movement.
A significant number of participants in the referendum were the youth, who did not mince words while expressing their disgust with corruption and the blatant reluctance of the entire political class in taking it head-on.
With the Budget session set to conclude on Tuesday, the much debated Lokpal Bill, instead of being brought in the Rajya Sabha, could be referred to a Joint Select Committee amid lack of consensus on its key provisions.
Opposing the United Progressive Alliance government's Lokpal Bill, Bharatiya Janata Party leader Arun Jaitley on Thursday said we do not want a weak and hollow law.
Attacking the government for keeping the Central Bureau of Investigation out of Lokpal, Anna Hazare on Wednesday accused it of "cheating" the people by bringing a weak Bill to "save" corrupt politicians.
Preparing for a showdown, Aam Aadmi Party government tonight said it was going ahead with tabling of the Jan Lokpal Bill in the Delhi assembly on Thursday notwithstanding Union Law Ministry's view that Centre's prior approval was required for it even as Congress and BJP held the move by the ruling dispensation as "unconstitutional".
Ahead of Anna Hazare's dharna in New Delhi on Sunday, government on Friday said Team Anna should await the passage of the Lokpal Bill before going ahead with any agitation on the issue.
Even as Prime Minister Dr Manmohan Singh assured the nation that his government was committed in passing the Lokpal Bill, Anna Hazare continued to accuse the government of deceit.
Even as Prime Minister Dr Manmohan Singh assured the nation that his government was committed in passing the Lokpal Bill, Anna Hazare continued to accuse the government of deceit.
Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar on Thursday questioned the Centre's decision of sending two drafts of Lokpal Bill for consideration and demanded that the government be clear before seeking states' views on the proposed legislation.
Activists of India Against Corruption led by Anna Hazare, got a shot in the arm with a referendum receiving overwhelming support in Congress President Sonia Gandhi's constituency Rae Bareli on Saturday.
Seeking to give a big push to the Lokpal Bill, Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi on Saturday appealed to all political parties to support the legislation saying it is a "very very powerful instrument" in the fight against corruption.
After having shaken up the United Progressive Alliance government through his fast at the Ramlila Grounds, Anna Hazare has now decided to focus on the Congress party as his enemy number 1.
Voicing disappointment over passage of a "useless" Lokpal Bill in Lok Sabha, Team Anna on Wednesday said it appeared the legislation is headed for a joint session of Parliament as the Rajya Sabha may pass a version different from the one already passed.
The much-talked about Lokpal Bill could be introduced in the Lok Sabha on Wednesday with the government writing to the Speaker to waive off the two-day period required before introducing a bill.
Justice N Santhosh Hegde, member of the Lokpal bill drafting committee, says: "It is sure going to be a no impact bill and I really do not have any great expectations from it says."
The Lokpal Bill will come up in Rajya Sabha on Friday and is a "priority" for the government, Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kamal Nath said on Thursday.
The Delhi Cabinet on Monday cleared the draft of the much talked-about Jan Lokpal bill which provides for covering all public servants -- from chief minister to Group D employees -- and seeks life term as maximum punishment for those found guilty of corruption.
The contentious anti-corruption Lokpal bill will come up for discussion next month in Parliament after the ongoing one-month recess of the budget session, Union Minister V Narayanasamy said on Sunday.
The Lokpal bill is expected to be brought in the Rajya Sabha on Monday with some key amendments including removal of the provisions for setting up of Lokayuktas in states.
As with the Women's Bill, so also with the proposed Lok Pal legislation, the exercise is essentially one of grand posturing by all parties, says Neerja Chowdhury.
Congress on Wednesday hailed party Vice-President Rahul Gandhi's "key role" in the passage of the historic Lokpal Bill, which was cleared by Parliament, while asserting that it was committed to bringing in an anti-corruption code in the country.
The Lok Pal Bill has been referred to the standing committee of Parliament on personnel, public grievances, law and hustice. In this FAQ, MR Madhavan explains the process of these committees.
Mukherjee, along with Parliamentary Affairs Minister PK Bansal and Human Resources Development Minister Kapil Sibal, held meetings with BSP leader Satish C Mishra and RJD chief Lalu Prasad as the debate was underway in the Rajya Sabha in effort to woo them
The government is learnt to have deleted the term 'minorities' from the Lokpal Bill with regard to the provision of having 50 per cent quota in the Lokpal bench and the Search Committee.
The Aam Aadmi Party government is unlikely to table the anti-graft Jan Lokpal Bill on the first day of the assembly session beginning on Thursday.
Indian Administrative Services officer Alka Sirohi, the key coordinator for the drafting of the Lokpal Bill, has been appointed as a Member of the Union Public Service Commission.
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