New Delhi: The Parliamentary Panel going
into the Lokpal Bill will take a call on the issue of
inclusion of Prime Minister in the anti-corruption watchdog at
its meeting this week, its chairman Abhishek Singhvi said
today.
"We have to discuss the issue in the next meeting,"
Singhvi said adding,"we are now at the stage of report
adoption and we hope to complete the work within this week".
Singhvi said 25 issues including those concerning media,
corporates, NGOs, lower bureaucracy and citizens grievances
have been "comprehensively dealt with" in the subtantive
report.
The Parliamentary Standing Committee on Personnel and Law
and Justice scrutinising the Lokpal Bill had on November 24
ended its internal deliberations with "broad consensus" on
most of the issues including giving constitutional status to
Lokpal.
Asked whether the report will satisfy everyone, Singhvi
said "we are not here to satisfy everyone or anyone. We are
here to satisfy our conscience and the nation".
The panel has been asked to give its report by December
7.
Parliamentary Affairs Minister Pawan Kuman Bansal has
already indicated that the government plans to bring the bill
in the last week of the current session of Parliament which
concludes on December 21.
A consensus on the inclusion of the Prime Minister under
the ambit of Lokpal has so far eluded the panel with members
sharply divided on the issue.
The panel is preparing to circulate the draft report of
its recommendations to the members in the next few days.
Team Anna had earlier expressed surprise at the move
to exclude Citizen's Charter and lower bureaucracy from the
ambit of the ombudsman, saying it was contrary to a Parliament
resolution.
PTI
First Published: Sunday, November 27, 2011, 21:19