New Delhi: Cranking up pressure, Anna Hazare
on Saturday wrote a fresh letter to Prime Minister saying doubts
have arisen over the passage of Lokpal Bill in this Parliament
session and threatened to go ahead with his proposed fast and
'jail bharo' agitation if it is not done.
Hazare alleged that the government's behaviour was "not
at all right" and asked why Singh changed his stand on
Citizens' Charter despite giving a written assurance that it
will be part of the Lokpal Bill.
The 74-year-old activist also questioned the rationale in
keeping CBI out of Lokpal, saying that there is no point in
having an ombudsman if it does not have its own investigating
agency.
Alleging that the UPA has given assurances on Lokpal Bill
but every time betrayed people, he said Singh in the past few
months has assured him in writing that a strong Lokpal Bill
will be passed in Parliament's Winter Session.
"We suspended all our agitations till Winter Session
taking your word on face value. Reports published in media now
say that the Winter Session will end on December 23. Will the
Lokpal Bill be passed by then. We have doubts on this.
"...despite your promises, if a strong, independent and
effective bill is not passed in the session, I will be forced
to sit on a fast from December 27. Jail Bharo agitation will
start from December 30," he said in his four-page letter.
Hazare appears to have pushed forward the date for the
jail bharo agitation by two days as he had earlier announced
that this mode of protest will be undertaken from January one
if Lokpal Bill was not passed in the ongoing session of
Parliament.
Demanding bringing CBI'a anti-corruption wing under
Lokpal and making it its investigative agency, he said it
appeared that no government wants to give away the control
over CBI for political reasons.
"Does it mean that Lokpal will not have an investigative
agency. Without an investigative agency what will it do? Then
it is better that we don't need a Lokpal," Hazare said
alleging whether it was Congress or BJP rule, CBI was misused.
Hazare said he was surprised to see the Union Cabinet
clearing a separate Citizens' Charter on December 13 when
Parliament has already passed a resolution in which it is
clearly mentioned that it will be under Lokpal.
"You (Singh) yourself have written to me and now why are
you changing your stand and say that it will be sent to the
Standing Committee. That will take another four months. Don't
you think that people are being cheated again and again," he
said.
The activist also pointed out the Parliamentary Standing
Committee recommendations on appointment of search and
selection committee for Lokpal were fraught with deficiencies
as politicians play a major role in it.
Hazare alleged that Parliamentary Standing Committee
chairman Abhishek Manu Singhvi insulted Parliament by not
taking into cognisance the resolution passed by the House.
"Out of the three issues -- inclusion of lower
bureaucracy, Citizens' Charter and state Lokayuktas, two of
them have not been accepted. If a Standing Committee Chairman
ignores Parliament's resolution, what is the future of our
democracy," Hazare said in the letter.
"The Standing Committee report (on Lokpal) is a betrayal
of the countrymen," he said.
PTI
First Published: Saturday, December 17, 2011, 13:43