Asserting that parliament was the sole body to frame laws, prime minister Manmohan Singh on Wednesday said Anna Hazare had sought to impose his version of lokpal bill and his path was "totally misconceived" and fraught with "grave consequences" for parliamentary democracy.

Making a statement in both houses of parliament in the wake of action against Hazare and his supporters, Singh said the government acknowledges the right of citizens to hold peaceful protests but permission for these is given subject to "appropriate conditions".

Amid continued chants of "shame shame" by opposition benches, he appealed to all political parties to ensure that the government and its processes and parliament and its processes function smoothly and effectively.

While giving details of the sequence of events that led to civil activist's arrest and subsequent release, Singh said Hazare had been held as a preventive measure because of apprehension of breach of peace.

"Government does not seek any confrontation with any section of the society. But when some sections of society deliberately challenge the authority of government and prerogative of parliament, it is the bounden duty of the government to maintain peace and tranquility," he asserted after demand by all opposition parties that nothing short of prime minister's statement would satisfy them.

"Hazare may be inspired by high ideals in his campaign to set up a strong and effective lokpal. However, the path that he has chosen to impose his draft of a bill upon parliament is totally misconceived and fraught with grave consequences for our parliamentary democracy," he said.

Singh, who spoke in parliament soon after a Congress Core Group meeting, asserted that it is the sole prerogative of parliament to make laws and government has gone by well-settled principles.

Insisting that "the issue" between the government and Anna Hazare is "not one of different attitudes to fighting corruption", the prime minister said the civil society activists "must allow the elected representatives of the people in parliament to do the job that they were elected for.

"With respect to the events of yesterday, I will only say that a functional democracy must allow multiple voices to be heard. But differences of opinion must be resolved through dialogue and consensus. Those who believe that their voice and their voice alone represents the will of 1.2 billion people should reflect deeply on that position," he said.

Singh said everyone in parliament agrees that lokpal bill must be passed as early as possible. "The question is, who drafts the law and who makes the law. I submit that the time-honoured practice is that the executive drafts a bill and places it before parliament and that parliament debates and adopts the bill with amendments if necessary," he said.

"However, I am not aware of any constitutional philosophy or principle that allows any one to question the sole prerogative of parliament to make a law," he observed.

He said that in making a law on lokpal, the government has "faithfully adhered to well-settled principles" and Hazare "questions these principles and claims a right to impose his jan lokpal upon parliament."

The prime minister said an organisation India Against Corruption (IAC) had given an application to Delhi Police for permission to hold a month-long fast beginning August 16.

The Delhi Police held discussions with the applicants in order to identify a suitable place and to formulate the conditions under which the permission could be granted for holding a fast at that place, he said.

"Eventually, on August 13, 2011, Delhi Police informed the applicants that permission would be granted for the protest at Jai Prakash Narayan Park, near Ferozshah Kotla, subject to permission being granted by the land owning agency and subject to certain conditions," Singh said.

He said the Delhi Police had sought an undertaking from IAC that they would abide by the conditions and when they failed to do so, prohibitory orders were imposed in the area.

Singh said Hazare was arrested after the police were convinced that he and his supporters would commit a cognisable offence by defying prohibitory orders and produced before a magistrate, who sent him to seven days' judicial custody as the activist failed to sign a personal bond.

He said when the Delhi Police came to know that Hazare was seeking legal remedy by approaching the supreme court, they sought a review of the order of the magistrate, who decided to release him from custody.

"However, Hazare and others, except one, declined to leave the jail premises unless the government gave an undertaking that they would be permitted to hold their protest fast at Jai Prakash Narayan Park without any condition," Singh said.

Requesting all political parties to ensure that parliament functions smoothly, Singh said important legislative measures were required to be passed. "If we do not pass them, we will do great injustice to the people of India and, in turn, hurt the aam aadmi," he said.

He said the government was willing to debate every issue in parliament. "We are cooperating with the opposition in every possible way to ensure that parliament functions smoothly," he said.

The prime minister said, "We, as elected representatives of our people, should do nothing to weaken our people's faith in the capacity of our democracy, our institutions and our social ideals and values to overcome all difficulties. We should have faith that we can build a promising future our ourselves. Let us unite in that faith."

Singh said government had held "extensive consultations and discussions" with Hazare and his team on the lokpal bill, held a meeting of all political parties represented in parliament and introduced a bill in the lok sabha.

The bill has been referred to the standing committee concerned, he noted.

Singh said notwithstanding the introduction of the bill, Hazare and his supporters have persisted with their demand that the jan lokpal bill drafted by them be introduced in parliament and that should be the bill that must be passed.

In support of this demand, Hazare had announced some time ago that he would undertake an indefinite fast beginning August 16, he said.

PM's statement on Anna a 'bundle of lies': oppn

Angered over the arrest of Anna Hazare, opposition on Wednesday dismissed as a "bundle of lies" prime minister Manmohan Singh's statement on the issue, noting that the arrest of the Gandhian has brought people on the streets all over the country.

"This government is not only corrupt but also repressive ...Corruption is a big issue and the way you have acted the people are on the streets," leader of the opposition Sushma Swaraj said, initiating a discussion on the issue in the lok sabha.

Speaker Meira Kumar allowed as a special case a debate on the issue after prime minister made a statement detailing the sequence of events that led to action against Hazare.

"The long statement conceals more than it reveals," Swaraj said, adding that protection of civil rights was one of the most important principles in a democratic country and the opposition parties which are for supremacy of parliament as also the judiciary, will fight for it.

She lamented that the Congress-led coalition protects the civil rights of separatists like S A R Geelani who had sometime back held a meet here but comes out against elderly Gandhians like Anna Hazare.

She said the way the police acted against Ramdev and his supporters at the Ramlila Maidan here on June 4 showed that this government was not a protector of civil rights.

"The government is shifting the responsibility from its shoulders to that of the Delhi Police commissioner," Swaraj said, adding that the attitude and the conduct of the government inside and outside parliament was beyond comprehension.

Swaraj accused the government of setting aside the principle of parliamentary supremacy and parliamentary processes when it came to drafting the lokpal bill.

"Who resorted to set aside the entire opposition and talked only to Team Anna?" Swaraj posed, having a dig at the prime minister who had spoken about parliamentary processes in his statement.

She said the civil society told the opposition that its suggestion to include the other political parties was shot down by the government. She alleged that the government involved the opposition only when its talks with the civil society group hit a stalemate.

Swaraj also sought to embarrass the Congress saying that its spokesperson had only two days back alleged that Hazare was "steeped in corruption from head to toe".

Sanjay Nirupam (Cong), who opened the innings for his party, asserted that nobody has the right to agitate against parliament and nobody is above the law.

Dismissing opposition charges against the prime minister and home minister, Nirupam said, "Is the PM or HM responsible for enforcing CrPC and IPC? It is the job of Delhi Police."

He maintained that despite so many arrests yesterday, the police had not wielded the lathi on any protestor. Yet the opposition was alleging that there was Emergency-like situation and violation of civil rights, he lamented.

Nirupam insisted that 34 of the 40 suggestions made by Hazare and his team were accepted by the government but still he wanted to go on a fast.

He alleged that Hazare is fasting against parliament and norms of the Constitution.