<p>With the Anna Hazare movement having lost steam, the Lokpal bill appears to be no one’s baby at present. As a result, the controversial draft legislation is unlikely to be brought before the Rajya Sabha in the current session of Parliament.<br /><br /></p>.<p>“We are trying our best to place the bill with some changes in this session itself,” Union Law Minister Salman Khurshid told Deccan Herald on Monday. However, he gave no indication if the government was confident enough to bring the controversial bill, passed by the Lok Sabha in the last session, within the next seven days in the Upper House. The budget session is scheduled to end on May 22.<br /><br />“Both Congress and BJP are keen that the bill be taken up and passed in this session itself. I, along with my other ministerial colleagues have already spoken to the Leader of the Opposition in the Rajya Sabha in this regard,” he added.<br /><br />Asked whether he will be speaking to other parties, Khurshid said ministers like P Chidambaram, Kapil Sibal and V Narayanasamy were in touch with other parties. While he did not say anything more, it is learnt that the Samajwadi Party and the Bahujan Samaj Party have asked the Congress “not to hurry” the bill.<br /><br />Senior leaders of the Congress stressed that without arriving at a consensus, there is no question of bringing the bill before the Rajya Sabha which witnessed uproarious scenes on the night of December 29, 2011, when the government was accused of running away from Parliament facing voting on the issue. “The Lokpal bill is like the Women’s bill (which was passed by the Rajya Sabha but yet to make it to the Lok Sabha): no one wants to speak against it but no one wants to pass it either,” said a senior minister.<br /><br />Khurshid said the government wants to bring nearly the same bill which was passed by the Lok Sabha in the last session. The new bill, however, will not have provision of lokayukta which was part of the bill that was passed in the Lok Sabha.<br /><br />Parties are opposed to the inclusion of the CBI in the Lokpal, inclusion of Group C&D employees in the anti-corruption ombudsman body, the process of appointment and removal of the Lokpal etc.</p>
<p>With the Anna Hazare movement having lost steam, the Lokpal bill appears to be no one’s baby at present. As a result, the controversial draft legislation is unlikely to be brought before the Rajya Sabha in the current session of Parliament.<br /><br /></p>.<p>“We are trying our best to place the bill with some changes in this session itself,” Union Law Minister Salman Khurshid told Deccan Herald on Monday. However, he gave no indication if the government was confident enough to bring the controversial bill, passed by the Lok Sabha in the last session, within the next seven days in the Upper House. The budget session is scheduled to end on May 22.<br /><br />“Both Congress and BJP are keen that the bill be taken up and passed in this session itself. I, along with my other ministerial colleagues have already spoken to the Leader of the Opposition in the Rajya Sabha in this regard,” he added.<br /><br />Asked whether he will be speaking to other parties, Khurshid said ministers like P Chidambaram, Kapil Sibal and V Narayanasamy were in touch with other parties. While he did not say anything more, it is learnt that the Samajwadi Party and the Bahujan Samaj Party have asked the Congress “not to hurry” the bill.<br /><br />Senior leaders of the Congress stressed that without arriving at a consensus, there is no question of bringing the bill before the Rajya Sabha which witnessed uproarious scenes on the night of December 29, 2011, when the government was accused of running away from Parliament facing voting on the issue. “The Lokpal bill is like the Women’s bill (which was passed by the Rajya Sabha but yet to make it to the Lok Sabha): no one wants to speak against it but no one wants to pass it either,” said a senior minister.<br /><br />Khurshid said the government wants to bring nearly the same bill which was passed by the Lok Sabha in the last session. The new bill, however, will not have provision of lokayukta which was part of the bill that was passed in the Lok Sabha.<br /><br />Parties are opposed to the inclusion of the CBI in the Lokpal, inclusion of Group C&D employees in the anti-corruption ombudsman body, the process of appointment and removal of the Lokpal etc.</p>
