Now, budget session D-day for Lokpal bill

Govt will study amendments and take decision accordingly

PTI | December 30, 2011



Attacking the opposition for Rajya Sabha's failure to pass the Lokpal Bill, parliamentary affairs minister Pawan Bansal today said the Bill will be taken up for consideration in the Bedget session of parliament.

"The Conduct of the opposition particularly the BJP in the Rajya Sabha, only showed that they were only interested in not passing the Bill," he told a press conference the night after the house was adjourned sine die abruptly without passing the Bill.

Also read: BJP choreographed fiasco on Lokpal Bill in RS: Govt

Bansal said the opposition and a party, apparently referring to ally Trinamool Congress, were not willing to play ball. They were not willing to cooperate. "They would rather see the nation fail than the government succeed."

Denying the charge of governmwnt having choreographed last night's events in rajya sabha, he said, "They (opposition) are guilty of stalling the proceedings for the simple reason that they did not want the Bill to be passed."

The minister said the effect of the enormous number of amendments (187 in number) was "confusing" and it was difficult for a governmwnt to accept them and to get the Bill passed because it would lead to legal problems.

"It is not that the Bill is dead. The amendments will be taken up in the budget session for consideration," Bansal said.

Related Story

Salman Khurshid slams BJP on Lokpal Bill

Law Minister Salman Khurshid today accused BJP of not speaking about its problems with Lokpal Bill before the debate on it in Rajya Sabha and sought to know from the party why it did not ask for the legislation to be put to vote with limited discussion.

Khurshid also attacked Team Anna for their criticism on non-passage of the Bill in Rajya Sabha, saying they never welcomed the passage of the legislation in Lok Sabha.

"Why did they (BJP) speak for long? He (Jaitley) should have spoken for 10 minutes. Whatever he had to say, he could have said in 10 minutes. They could have reduced the number of speakers they had," he told reporters here.

The Minister was responding to a question on Jaitely's remarks that the whole action in Rajya Sabha was choreographed and speakers were made to continue the debate.

Khurshid said if the BJP had believed that it had the support of the rest of the House, it should have sought a direct vote without any debate.

"Why don't they answer all that. If the game is played it is played on both sides. Why were they playing a game? It is as simple as that," he said.

On Team Anna member Kiran Bedi attacking Government for its failure to pass the Bill, he said the former IPS officer has all the right to air her views.

"She says a lot of things and she will continue to say. That is her right. I don't remember Team Anna welcoming when Lokpal Bill was passed in Lok Sabha. We were villains then and now too," he said.

Comments

 

Other News

AI: Code, Control, Conquer

India today stands at a critical juncture in the area of artificial intelligence. While the country is among the fastest adopters of AI in the world, it remains heavily reliant on technologies developed elsewhere. This paradox, experts warn, cannot persist if India seeks technological sovereignty.

RBI pauses to assess inflation risks, policy transmission

The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has begun the new fiscal year with a calibrated pause, keeping the repo rate unchanged at 5.25 per cent in its April Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) meeting. The decision, taken unanimously, reflects a shift from aggressive policy action to cautious observation after a signi

New pathways for tourism growth

Traditionally, India’s tourism policy has been based on three main components: the number of visitors, building tourist attractions and providing facilities for tourists. Due to the increase in climate-related issues and environmental destruction that occurred over previous years, policymakers have b

Is the US a superpower anymore?

On April 8, hours after warning that “a whole civilisation will die tonight,” US president Donald Trump, exhibiting his unique style of retreating from high-voltage brinkmanship, announced that he agreed to a two-week ceasefire with Iran. The weekend talks in Islamabad have failed and the futur

Machines communicate, humans connect

There is a moment every event professional knows—the kind that arrives without warning, usually an hour before the curtain rises. Months of meticulous planning are in place. And then comes the call: “We’ll also need a projector. For the slides.”   No email

Why India is entering a ‘stagflation lite’ phase

India’s macroeconomic narrative is quietly shifting—from a rare “Goldilocks” equilibrium of stable growth and contained inflation to a more fragile phase where external shocks are beginning to dominate domestic policy outcomes. The numbers still look reassuring at first glance: GDP


Archives

Current Issue

Opinion

Facebook Twitter Google Plus Linkedin Subscribe Newsletter

Twitter