'PM under Lokpal does not suit us'

Stating that the bill was just an ordinary one and cannot tamper with special powers delegated to Supreme Court judges, Bhat said: “Asking the Prime Minister to be under the ambit is not suitable for our system.” He explained, in India an “accused” PM cannot function and not having a prime minister will create a vacuum at the Centre which is not something that is needed. “It is more important to run the country than preventing corruption, the latter must be a part of running the country.”

Questioning whether the civil society was trying to put in place a parallel system, he said it was unconstitutional if the civil society wants Lokpal to be financially independent.

He also criticised the Centre for having drafted a weak Lokpal bill and said that the Lokpal cannot be the solution for corruption. The civil society’s draft, he said, had more teeth, “...In fact, it only has teeth.”

Bhat was here to participate in an interaction on Lokpal bill.