High drama in Lok Sabha; BJP not helping to strengthen Lokpal, says Pranab; Opposition terms Bill "weak"
The Lok Sabha on Tuesday night passed a historic Lokpal and Lokayuktas Bill, 2011, but defeated a parallel Constitution (116th Amendment) Bill, which would have given the Lokpal constitutional status.
In a major embarrassment to the UPA government, Leader of the House Pranab Mukherjee admitted that the government did not have the requisite two-thirds majority to get the Constitution Amendment adopted. “It is a sad day for democracy,” he said.
Mr. Mukherjee accused the Bharatiya Janata Party of not helping to strengthen the Lokpal and Lokayuktas by giving them constitutional status, even as there was a sharp exchange of words between the treasury and the main Opposition benches.
Rahul upset
After three clauses of the Constitution Amendment Bill were defeated, Speaker Meira Kumar announced that it had fallen and had become “infructuous.” Congress general secretary and MP Rahul Gandhi, who had first proposed that the Lokpal be given constitutional status on the lines of the Election Commission, appeared visibly upset. His idea was also favoured by the report of the Parliamentary Standing Committee on the Lokpal.
The Whistle-blowers Bill (Protection to Persons Making the Disclosures Bill, 2010) was also passed by the Lok Sabha, which literally burnt the midnight oil to complete the legislative business.
After a marathon debate, lasting for over 10 hours, the Lok Sabha passed by voice vote the Bill for creation of the Lokpal.
Fate in Upper House
In the next step, the Bill will have to get the nod from the Rajya Sabha before it goes to the President for her assent. The UPA government does not have a majority in the Upper House and so the fate of the anti-graft Bill will be at the mercy of the Opposition.
The Lokpal and Lokayuktas Bill also saw a number of amendments, moved by the government. One of the key amendments accepted was keeping the defence forces and coast guard personnel out of the purview of the anti-graft ombudsman and increasing the exemption time of former MPs from five to seven years.
SP, BSP walk out
A number of amendments moved by the Opposition, which sought to bring corporates and the media under the Lokpal, were defeated. The Samajwadi Party and the Bahujan Samaj Party staged a walkout, saying their demands were not being met.
In an intervention, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh asked all the parties to “rise above partisan politics” to demonstrate to the people of the country that “this House means business” in its effort to combat corruption.
He said a “holistic” approach was needed to deal with the “cancer” of corruption but rejected demands for bringing the CBI within the purview of the Lokpal. No entity should be created inconsistent with the constitutional framework, he cautioned.
A number of parties, including the BJP, the BJD, the JD(U), the RJD, the SP, the TDP and the Left described the Lokpal Bill as “weak” and wanted it withdrawn.
Countering the Opposition charge, Mr. Mukherjee rejected the contention that the legislation had been brought in “haste” or under pressure. He said the country and the people had been waiting anxiously for the past four decades for an effective law to curb corruption.
“There is a long history of the last six months. We entered into a dialogue with civil society,” Mr. Mukherjee said. “It is not under duress but we wanted to have a strong anti-corruption legislation in the form of a Lokpal, an ombudsman which will examine corruption in high places,” he said.
Congress evasive on numbers
PTI reports:
The Congress on Tuesday night remained ambivalent on the party MPs who remained absent when voting on the Constitution Amendment Bill on the Lokpal was taken up in the Lok Sabha.
“We don't know how many [MPs] were there. It is for the Parliamentary Affairs Minister and our leader to decide,” Minister of State in the PMO V. Narayanasamy told journalists at the Parliament House.
He was replying to a question on the Congress MPs who failed to make it for the voting.
The UPA strength is 277, including five MPs of Ajit Singh's RLD, which recently joined the alliance.
Parliamentary Affairs Minister P.K. Bansal admitted that at least 25 MPs of the Congress and its allies were not present during the voting.
“We knew our numbers. But we wanted to show that we really wanted to have a strong Lokpal. And for that, we wanted to give it constitutional status. But the BJP and other Opposition parties did not want that to happen,” he said.
Keywords: Anna Hazare fast, Lokpal Bill debate, Parliament Session, Winter Session, Lokpal Bill, anti-corruption movement, Lokayuktas, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh
I am not sure what the Indians are expecting from parliamentarians elected by corrupt citizens(Take money and vote based on the personal benefit). Until we change our attitude and select honest politicians, I don't think we can expect corrupt free government. All the laws and bills are only man made and our politicians are clever than us to circumvent them. So let all of us take a oath that we will vote for people with very high dignity and honesty in the coming election. It's not easy though to achieve. But if we starts the process today, probably in quarter century our parliament and assemblies will be of person whom we like.
Be hopefull at least some thing is going on in comparision to nothing ...I m happy with public awareness......
Bribe, Corruption and Black Money - These evils shall not disappear from the Indian scenerio even after a millenium, unless we change the system of governance into one of Benevolent Rule. Though we could achieve our dream of independence, we cannot even dream of a Lok Pal Bill and even if we enact the bill, it will be one among the junk of the thousands of laws already enacted, given the justice delivery system we have. Take for example, 25 years of trial and Rs.250 crores spent on Bofors case (so strenously exposed by the Hindu),the end result: we could not even ensure Quotrochi's presence in our Courts. Hundreds of cases at the higher level, thousands in the middle level and lakhs and lakhs every day at the lowest level, of the three evils, we should live with them, no other go. Our democracy is the greatest corruptocracy, adharmocracy and mobocracy. We must die, silently crying within outselves.
Govt Lokpal bill is "dhoka" betrayal to 120 crores of poor Indians. And all political parties are equally responsible for it. Citizen Charter, Group C & D, Lokaukta, Whisltblower protection, Judiciary are all out of it and Lokpal is influence by political masters. All sorts of corruption is legitimate by the Lokpal. Biggest betrayal to us.
Heaven wont fall if constitutional status is not given to Lokpal for all the such authorities are always the nominees. They would tend to be dictatorial just to give vent to their own convictions. a constitutional authority can only be impeached. If they are non-constitutional authority, they will be subject law of land just as any other ordinary citizen. They should not be given constitutional immunity as they have only acted in arrogance in the past. It is the duty of the people to elect impartial and honest parliamentarians who would not hesitate to defy their own party for wrong policies .
The Lokpal bill, along with the amendments inserted is a very weak one, will be no different than the weak CVC that exists. We wanted a Lokpal that could bring a change in the politico-administrative system. With reservation in Lokpal, govt can have its own people in the Lokpal. PM has been brought in its ambit, but leaving the final decision to Parliament is a trap since ruling party has a majority there. Also, extending the time limit upto 7 yrs means the aam admi gets no relief.
What remains is the process of grievance redressal and other complaints is very lengthy and will keep dragging on. CBI should have been independent. I say, dont bring it under Lokpal - agreed, atleast keep it under an independent Police Commission.This is a deliberate attempt to maintain the status quo. While Lokpal should have a constitutional status, not this weak Lokpal - which otherwise, can make future improvements very difficult.
I am not sure why there is so much rhetoric here. the good point, a Lokpal bill, the Grievance redressal, judicial accountability bill, whistle blowers bill etc is passed. a step forward, may need refinements later. lots of people saying this is toothless, not sure why. It is dangerous a federal police with no checks. CBI does other cases also like Murder, Economic offences etc. No where in the world is a federal police which does not report to the Govt. Why are we insisting on this? Lokpal has the right to oversee all cases referred by them to CBI and can take any action, is that not a good first step?. Then the voice against lokayuktas? The most common corruption which we face in our day to day life, is in the states. I can understand some regional parties crying against it, but why BJP is against. Should we not have a common approach for corruption across India?. Why Team Anna is mum on this?. and why are they mum on consitutional amendment. 'All things which are white is not milk'
Lalu was honest enough to declare that if the Lokpal bill of Anna is passed every MP has to go to Phansi Ghar (gallows). That in fact what was in the minds of many MPs. It is foolish to expect anything else from what they passed. It is sad that Rahul who is still a youth and not held any position in the govt. so far and expected to burn with zeal for a clean public life, joining the old guard. One expected that he would have had nothing to fear from Anna's bill. Sad.
Parliament is represented by persons with criminal background and/or those who got vote with graft. A weak LOK PAL bill was passed in Lok Sabha by such people while others like Lal Prasad Yadav who said a strong LOK PAL bill is noose around his neck walked out. Thanks to the coalition politics, it needed Supreme Court to order CBI to act on 2G, CWG & Black Money scams. The Congress Government wants such a status to continue and that is the reason why its version of Lok PAL bill has been passed with the support of corrupt parties which absconded instead of agreeing or rejecting the bill.
Is it the duty of the opposition to oppose anything that the ruling party introduces? It is a scar on the beautiful face of democracy.Do the MP's sitting in the parliament understand the feelings of an citizen? It is an absolute no.If the opposition was so keen on making the bill powerful they should have supported the 116th amendment bill.And the ruling party's leader of the house Mr.Pranab mukerjee says that they didn't have the number to pass the amendment bill and how the ministers belonging to their side were not even present for such an issue for which the country has been awaiting since so long.
As the one just entering the tunnel who struggles to view what is at the end,the much hyped LokPal has been voted in Parliament triggering mixed response that the UPA has to take leaf out of. Corruption earned the national focus thanks to the protests launched by Team Anna and an effective Lokpal to nail the malaise gained traction. The UPA's training its gun on the Team has not earned credibility and its initial dithering and nonchalance in constituting Lokpal drew flak.The present form of the bill still suffers from scores of inadequacies like CBI, the corporates and of course the office of PM,though with a few tag, fly out of the ambit of the Act, the future legislature has to shape it further in plugging the loopholes.
What is happening in parliament is a well scripted, directed and cast feature film by all political parties and their so called people's representatives betraying people by first tabling not the best lokpal bill and secondly show as if this was due to the other party not voting in favor of the bill. This was evident during the debate and voting in LS. Media is also pretending as if what ever is going on are true events. All political parties had joined hands to betray the people of India. So my fellow country men let's not have any hopes out of RS or from a join session of both the houses. Listen carefully to what Mr. Laloo Prasad Yadav is candidly commenting in between the debate and through interviews, To me he is the one who actually speaks the true planned actions of all parties.It is evident now that the politicians of this country are united and determined to nourish the system with a weak Lokpal Bill is passed so that the corruption always flourishes.
People of India want immediate relief from corruption which cannot be fulfilled by current bill passed by Lok Sabha. A Lokpal required is the one that covers everyone in the government machinery who are responsible for decision making and translating those decisions into action.
People who are counting numbers are the ones who think the movement is fizzing out but as said we have intelligent people who watched their MPs in action in parliament to plan next move. Time will tell what strength and leaders this movement has given to India. These very people of civil societies got us RTI and will get Lokpal too - Pranab Da is good human but a poor Indian. All his claim of faith in government in selection process of CVC, CAG, CBI or CEC are hogwash - Congress deeds do not match with their words. World know how these very institutes work against the principals of democracy and people of India to please their political masters. Mr. S.Y. Quraishi recent dictate proves the point and its not exception. Few days ago ministers tried to their best to threaten head of CAG Mr. Vinod Rai. I am sorry for Rahul & SoniaG for their understanding of Indian Democracy and people of India despite veterans like Pranab Da, lawyers like Sibbal and complete government machinery they coul
Any number of bills / any number of stricter laws can be of no use
unless enforcing of those are not done in letter and spirit. The
enforcement of laws should be done strictly irrespective of caste /
religion / political affiliations / Status in society. Only then any law
will have any meaning really.
It is a sad day in Democracy,as the UPA government paased a weak Lokpal bill,defeating the very basis for enacting a strong Lokpal.It also hurriedly tried to get it Constitutional status,knowing full well that it is woefully short of the requisite two-thirds majority.On what basis they moved the constitutional Amendment bill,is only known to Mrs. Sonia Gandhi.as non other is having the powers to table the bill as the history of UPA-I &UPA-II,Governments.This brings the two faces and two tongues that are prevelant in the UPA-II,vis a vis Congress.Blaming BJP is preposterous.
What is the use of the legislation with Lokpal having a constitutional status which lacks independence in functioning and without the required tooth to prosecute...it is a good thing that the bill did not get constitutional status in its present form. It was a defeat for congress alone for having moved this half baked bill clearly with forthcoming elections in 5 states in mind.
As expected 116th Amendement to the Constitution was defeated but the Lokpal Bill was passed in the Loksabha. There is no certainty that the Lokpal Bill will be cleared by the Rajyasabha. The developments indicate need for further rethink on the concept of Lokpal. The idea of Lokpal initially appeared very attractive. However, subsequently logical infirmities and impracticalities of implementation were noticed and this resulted in divided and confused political class. Furthermore, the proponents of the concept of Lokpal averred superiority of participatory democracy over representative democracy. Thus patently absurd concepts like Gram Sabha were floated without bothering to clarify how dissenting views could be aired in a mob of thousands and how the people's mandate could be measured without casting votes in ballot box.No wonder that the so called mass support for the Anna movement has quickly dissipated.
Lokpal -a welcome move in the right direction.It is obvious that in a coalition ministry getting a consenses for such a bill is impractical.Still the one passed can undergo lots of fine tuning in the days ahead and come more successful.It need to be a mile stone after its recurant defeats in the last 40 years.The intension of the ruling party can't be construed as in the wrong direction as the same government has given birth to the Right for information act which became a prelude to expose rampant corruption.Whether it is weak or strong now there is a bill to act on it.Needless to say that need of a frame is the prerequist for doing a painting-no matter how beautiful is the painting being done.So now we have a frame with a reasonably good painting.Let the parlamentarians especially the opositin fine tune it and make it more attractive.The onlookers-the public can also contribute substantially well.
The political parties, despite their differences in ideologies have come together to make the common man look like a fool for trusting them. Really, Mr. Pranab, it is indeed a sad day for democracy. Joining the culprit IAS as serious as being culprit. So the PM,FM,DM, HM are all culprits in this merciless slaughter of democracy, despite having a clean image. You and your compatriots in the opposition should understand one thing. The days of Chanakya politics are over. Even the common man now understands the cheap politics played by the so-called elected representatives. There is no difference in caste, creed, relegion and sex when it comes about defeating their common enemy- the Common Man and his simple life and right to live peacefully. The politics have started acting like maggots on a dead democracy. Whether the dead body needed be removed or replaced lies in the hands of us patriots. These traitors should be taught a lesson the democratic way in the coming elections. Jai Hind
I can understand the problem of UPA.I will appreciate their decision
which they taken after various contradiction.
The best metaphor to describe this whole process is trying to build an edifice without a foundation. When we have a parliament filled with corrupt people bent upon vandalizing society it is foolish to hope a levitation of anti-corruption ombudsman. First and foremost the parliament needs to be flushed clean. Then we need not bother about Lokpals or Lokayuktas alleviating political frauds.
There is no point in blaming the Opposition for not being cooperative enough to give the Lokpal constitutional status when 25 MPs of ruling coalition were absent during voting. This clearly demonstrates lack of seriousness of the UPA. It is their failure not to get their acts right and come as a cohesive unit during the voting and passage of the Bill. Let's see how things pan out in the Rajya Sabha. If BJP MP Kirti Azad's comment is anything to go by then there are little reasons to be hopeful of a clean passage as he asserted that this 'weak' bill will be defeated in the Upper House.
Mr. Pranab, the people of this country wants strong Lokpal, not the Lokpal bill passed by you, which has been prepared to make it ineffective in all sense. It is better not to pass any bill then passing the bill in current format. You are cheating the people of this country and blaming the opposition. Shame on you.
The undercurrent is very clear. The MPs do not want to weaken vigilance surveillance on them. Also the non- congress parties in power in the States do not want their /Ministers and MLAs to be under powerful Lok ayukth scanner. And the UPA did not ensure that all their M.Ps are present and vote for the constitution amendment bill. All in all a half hearted effort delivering a weak Lokpal indeed. The objective of eradicating corruption in high places is not fulfilled.This may may further increase protests and may pave way to turbulent times.
At last Congress has fulfilled their 'ritual formalities' by passing this tooth less & useless 'lok(Joke)pal' bill. During the voice vote taken about 25 congress MPs were absent, from this itself we can easily judge that how they are serious about corruption? Long live India!
The greatest loophole in our constitution is that there is no restriction in the no. of parties. A party means a particular ideology, which means everyone wants to rule in their own way, because everyone thinks that his analysis is perfect. So if the flexibilty is given, then there will be infinite count of such ideology and hence the parties. Now more the no.of parties, the votes will be shared among the parties & hence no single party can have the majority and in that case a gavernment can be formed by combining many party (i.e. many idealogies). Now as each party wants that only they shoulf get the appreciation, so it is obvious that all these problems and politics arise. And it is obvious, as we are humans. So there is no solution. In that case, to put a control, it is very important to put some kind of constraint (like restricting the no. of parties say). It is the root cause of everything. Always remember, none of the rules can bring a change, until we are honest in our conduct.
The Congress party was projecting itself as a frontrunner in bringing out a very strong and effective Lokpal bill, but when the crucial bill was to be voted a number of its own members were absent. If congress party wants to prove that it does not suffer credibility deficit in fighting the cancer of corruption, it should identify the absentees, ascertain the causes for their absence and if proved that their absence was wilfull, must expel them from the party. Will it do it?
Its a shameful and sad day in democracy of India. Clearly shows how Congress, BJP and other political parties want to end this matter in haste and bury it with some lame bill.
Anna's delirium was fully exploited by his team and opposition parties. The noble cause is lost through their hypocriticy. Nation will never forgive them for their hubris.
"INDIA expects that every Rajya Sabha MP will now do his duty" - with apologies to Admiral Horatio Nelson.
Most of politician needs to put into van and throw into ganga for holy purification.how pathetic ,they lokpal made and specially how dirty game played by BJP since starting of game.
A valiant attempt by the ruling party,they knew they didn't have the numbers,but still tried.Kudos PM and his party atleast for exposing the oppositions.My personal view is, it is the best any government could have done under the present circumstances.Its true that it may not hold everything to satisfy Team Anna,but it cannot be ignored that the govt. did make a serious attempt.The congress was almost branded an anti-lokpal all through these days.But it is the other major National Party which has taken that title now with its acts and intentions exposed.keeping aside their political differences they could and SHOULD have helped the Amendment.Its a shame and blackmark on them for acting on personal Political interest.The losers here., THE COUNTRY AND ITS PEOPLE.Having said that, it would be most foolish on our part to expect the politicans work for the people and the country.
“Bad laws are the worst sort of tyranny.” (Edmund Burke, 1780)
Had a bill giving Constitutional Status for the Anti corruption ombudsmen Lokpal and Lokayukta on the lines of the Election commission or the CVC would have truly made these institutions apolitical, stand judicial scrutiny and truly made them function in letter and spirit of being free from national or international vested influences in the short run or the long run - more importantly would have given a legal framework of making these very important institutions truly accountable to the people of India. While all other institutions could be influenced - in a manner of speaking, as the wind blows or the news papers direct - a constitutional body commands the respect and finality that the corrupt elements in our political system are afraid of. It is commendable that - whether people attribute reasons of political expediency to the current government or the ruling coalition or not - that Constitutional amendment Bill was indeed proposed and regrettable that it was scuttled.
At last, a bill for anti-corruption in the name of Lokpal is passed in the Lok Sabha. There may be several flaws in it and many sections may not be helpful to the nation but a Bill is passed to control the corruption in higher places. The Bill can be amended whenver the parliament and the public feel necessary to tighten the screws on corrupt people. We do not have such regulatory authority till date to control the corruption. Of course, there are Lok Ayukta etc. but they are toothless. Now, the bill wrests some power to punish the culprits. It's a good move towards controlling the corruption. Hazare's fast is nothing but a nuisance for his rigid stance against the bill.
Invariably all political parties are not interested to bring effective Lokpal bill. As a layman we don't know the legal aspect of this bill but we know how the Election Commission of India having constitutional status are taken into account of election expenses presented by the contested candidates. If any one verify the complicity of accounts given by the parliamentarian at the time election to the ECI will show how they are genuine to the public and society. Will they come forward for the scrutiny of election expenses by the Lokpal first to have confidence? If they agree to do so we will welcome the stand of UPA government.
Parliament shows its true colours. The blame game will not work at election time.
Well, Rome was not built in a day. Likewise, the immense structure of corruption, which has solidified over the years, cannot be changed in just one day. It is a good start that the Lokpal has passed, let us work on it and improve it over the coming years. Let us learn to be not just idealogiical, but also practical.
Irrespective of what is in the Lokpal bill, there is no reason for opposing constitutional status to Lokpal. Except for the sake opposition, BJP gained nothing from it. Opposing everything the govt. brings became a norm for it. Probably the least productive opposition.
BJP is right not to vote for a weak, insufficient and ineffective bill to go through.
It is interesting to see every political party trying to outsmart the other by clamouring for a "stronger Lok Pal Bill". "Withdraw this weak Lok Pal Bill", says the main opposition party! They want to be seen as more committed than others to anti-corruption. Well, they had also their time as the governing party at the centre. Where was this enthusiasm then? Corruption would have vanished long ago from our country, if these political parities were really committed to non-corrupt practices, for all major corruption scandals in the country so far have been by politicians belonging to one or the other political party. If they were really non-corrupt we would not have had the need for such a bill in the first place. Instead of debating the finer points of the Bill let the political parties muster enough moral courage and determination to purify and re-commit themselves to the ideal of selfless service of the nation, and imbibe a bit of the idealism of the great freedom fighters.
the government not only failed in to bring an open minded lokpalbill which could have beeen passed in the Lok Sabha,but also hurriedly went for it so as to get publicity in the eyes of citizens of India.The fast by Anna hazare today also a coincidence on the bill that was lagging to become a constitutional entity.Till then true Lokpal is not brought in with the support of all the sections of the society the UPA cannot enforce it on the people and the future generations.
Wow...what a remarkable match-fixing! Congress will try to take credit for a Lokpal which cannot investigate. BJP will give publicity that Lokpal Constitutional Bill defeat is UPA's defeat. SP/BSP both can shout in UP elections that they are against both Cong and BJP. Communists can claim that their amendment for corporates to be brought under Lokpal was defeated by both Cong-BJP and many others. Perfect atmosphere for all major political parties in the coming days. Politicians are thus those people who can manage things mostly in their favour all their lives.
A black day in INDIAN democracy.The government has cheated the whole nation....
Your bill on Lok Pal is yet cannot qualify as as Act as it has to get passed at Rajya sabha. This government does not have necessary majority to pass the bill. into Act. So this Lok Pal bill passed at Lok Sabha is still a still born baby as the baby is not delivered, but struggling to survive. What a colossal loss of time wastage of four decades.
It appears there seems to be double speak by government so too opposition. Lok pal bill is a separate bill it should not contain many constitutional amending clauses like reservation and over and above constitutional status like equal status with CEC, till separate Act is separately made out. How can you make a kitchadi of all the aspects of constitution. OK Lokpal need not include CBI indeed sensible. Indian parliamentarians need training in making of bills specially in relation to laws.
This is a sad day for democracy, because of pressure from Urban elites, govt has brought this unnecessary Evil lokpal bill, There was no need for any lokpal, Today Anna did fast in Mumbai, there were very few supporters - Real supporters of anna are very less, today on a working weekday who would come to support him, they would rather enjoy India vs Australia Test match, All the previous campaigns by anna were done in Delhi on weekend where people would gather to spend their weekends for time-pass, GOVT shouldn't have succumbed to these hypocrites, Irom Sharmila is fasting for 10 years but nobody asks her, why so special treatment for Anna? In marathi there is a saying "Mhatari melyache dukkha nahi pan kaal sokavato" It means, Its okay if a very old person dies but Death shouldnt prevail. By bringing lokpal under pressure from Team anna agitation, GOVT has set WRONG PRECEDENT.
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