Civil society members of the committee to draft the Lokpal Bill will launch a non-violent campaign throughout the country if the government’s final version does not incorporate all their suggestions, social activist Swami Agnivesh said in Bangalore on Sunday.
“The civil society team is waiting the final draft. We will meet (Anna) Hazare in Delhi tomorrow. If government does not agree to our demands, a new non-violent programme will be launched all over the country. Maybe it will have somebody like Hazare taking to fast... but all will depend on the final draft,” he said at function in Bangalore.
He said the government’s June 21 draft given to them was better than that of December 2010, but still there is no “full satisfaction” on some contentious issues.
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Swami Agnivesh said, “There will be no looking back on including Prime Minister within the ambit of draft of Lokpal Bill, otherwise another struggle under Anna Hazare may become inevitable.”
He said keeping the Prime Minister out of Lokpal would take away all its credibility. “This is because a Prime Minister usually keeps a dozen or more portfolios for himself. Currently most scams like the 2G, Cauvery-Godavari, which are now coming up relate to Prime Minister’s Office.”
He said if the government decides to keep the Prime Minister out of the Lokpal ambit, it will not just be a loss of credibility of Lokpal, but also “reflect very badly on the present Prime Minister”.
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He recalled how former Prime ministers V.P. Singh and A.B. Vajpayee offered themselves to be under this law.
“Manmohan Singh had earlier offered to come under Lokpal. What has gone wrong now? Why is the government suddenly backing out? We do not understand,” he said.