Govt engineered high drama in RS: Team Anna

Says govt committing fraud after fraud as apparent by their behaviour

PTI | December 30, 2011



Team Anna on Friday sought to tear into government on the Lokpal Bill alleging that it engineered the high drama in rajya sabha as it did not have the intention to set up a strong anti-corruption ombudsman.

Putting the blame squarely on government, Anna Hazare's supporters contended that government could have passed the bill if it had accepted the three amendments -- independence of CBI, selection and removal process and delinking Lokayukta -- on which opposition was in agreement.

They chose not to attack opposition on its insistence that Lokayukta in states should not be brought through the Bill, though it is one of their key demands, but insisted that its passage after accepting opposition amendments would have been the first step towards setting up a strong Lokpal.

"The way the voting in rajya sabha was prevented shows that government was committing fraud after fraud. They say they want to bring a strong Lokpal but they don't have the intention," Team Anna member Arvind Kejriwal told reporters here.

He said the Bill presented in the house was not only weak but also "dangerous" as the ombudsman was fully under the control of government.

In lok sabha, he said, 55 amendments were moved and all of them were not uselss. There were good amendments like the one demanding independence for CBI but all of them were defeated by the government "wrongly using its majority", he said.

Noting that the entire opposition was in agreement with three amendments, Kejriwal said if there was voting, it would have been carried out as two of them -- on CBI and selection and removal process -- were critical.

"It would have been the beginning of a strong Lokpal," he said while another Team Anna member Prashant Bhushan said, "now the fight is for to save democracy."

Comments

 

Other News

Who checks the books?

I read about the news about the Coimbatore library over coffee this morning. On the face of it, the headline was about a political ‘war’ between the DMK and TVK. But what stayed with me was something much more important than the blame game behind what had transpired. A writer walking through

Development paradox: Falling poverty miracle and an inequality problem

India’s reduction in poverty over the past decade is a development achievement of considerable significance. The World Bank’s April 2026 ‘India Development Update’ estimates that the share of Indians living below the international extreme-poverty line of $3.00 per person per day i

In Arunachal, a river we call mother

In Arunachal Pradesh, the Siang is not just a river. For many of us, especially the Adi people, it is part of our family. Our grandparents fished in it. Children learned to swim in it. Our farms drink from it. When someone says a huge dam will be built on it, we do not hear the word "project".

A new retelling of the Mahabharata delves into key moments

In a time when every decision carries consequences and questions of ambition, power, loyalty, identity and moral choice continue to shape our lives, Dr. Arun Krishnan’s new book, ‘Mahakshana’ (Penguin India) offers a strikingly relevant retelling of the Mahabharata.  

Cabinet approves viability gap funding to develop grid-scale energy storage systems

The Union Cabinet, chaired by PM Narendra Modi, has approved the Viability Gap Funding (VGF) Scheme for Development of Grid-Scale Energy Storage Systems, with a total financial support of Rs.14,500 crore for the period FY 2026-27 to FY 2030-31. The scheme aims to support the development o

Cabinet creates a pathway to absorb Agniveers in Defence Forces

An objective assessment in terms of organisational requirements and operational efficiency has brought out the outstanding performance of Agniveers in terms of skills, motivation levels, physical fitness and technological prowess. As envisaged earlier, based on merit, 25% of Agniveers will be offered reg

Upcoming Conferences



-->

Archives

Current Issue

Opinion

Facebook Twitter Google Plus Linkedin Subscribe Newsletter

Twitter