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Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh
addressing the Civil Services Day, in New Delhi on April 21,
2011. |
New Delhi:
As clouds of controversy darkened over Lokpal bill drafting
committee co-chair Shanti Bhushan with fresh demands for his
ouster and his civil society colleagues asking him not to buckle
under pressure, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh said Thursday the
legislation to tackle corruption would be introduced in July.
Admitting that there was "growing
feeling" amongst people that present systems were ineffective in
dealing with corruption, the prime minister said he hoped to bring
the more stringent anti-graft Lokpal (ombudsman) bill in the
monsoon session of parliament.
"Our aim is to strengthen the legislative framework, revamp
administrative practices and procedures and fast track a systemic
response to fighting corruption. A committee of ministers and
representatives of civil society is at work to finalise the draft
of the Lokpal Bill, which we hope to be able to introduce during
the monsoon session of parliament," he told a gathering of civil
servants.
While the prime minister put forward the government's agenda, the
panel to draft the much discussed bill, set up after a
fast-unto-death by reformer Anna Hazare, found itself fighting
taint. The focus, said civil society activists, must be on a more
effective law.
At the centre of it all was former law minister Shanti Bhushan and
his son Prashant, two of the five civil society representatives in
the 10-member committee that also comprises five union ministers.
The Bhushans -- who fought allegations that they had got
undervalued property in Noida and Allahabad -- were back in the
news Thursday over a CD that purportedly contains a conversation
between Shanti Bhushan, Samajwadi Party chief Mulayam Singh Yadav
and then party leader Amar Singh on fixing a judge for a hefty
consideration.
Shanti Bhushan claims the CD is forged, as he had never spoken to
the two politicians, and had last week registered a police
complaint.
The CD has been tested in different labs, which have given
different versions on its authenticity.
A Delhi Police official said that "initial" reports from a
forensic lab in Hyderabad suggested the CD was not tampered with.
"We have received the reports today (Thursday) and the test
confirms that it is not tampered," a source at the Delhi Police
Special Cell told IANS.
Amar Singh was furious and reiterated Thursday Shanti Bhushan and
Prashant should resign from the committee.
"The Bhushans say they don't know me... He said has not met or
interacted with me but in 1996 he appeared twice in a case filed
by us. We paid fees to him which he had conveniently forgotten,"
Amar Singh told a TV channel.
Amar Singh said even if the CD is spliced, the content is serious
and needs to be investigated.
In Lucknow, Congress leader Digvijay Singh was also in attack
mode. He said he would answer Shanti Bhushan's defamation notice
in court.
Shanti Bhushan Wednesday served a legal notice on Digvijay Singh,
demanding a public apology for alleging he had undervalued a
property in Allahabad and not paid adequate stamp duty.
As the Bhushans fought with their backs to the wall, their
colleagues Arvind Kejriwal and Kiran Bedi told the media that the
movement for the Lokpal bill would not be diluted.
Former police officer Bedi said the Bhushans were on the panel for
their legal expertise. The Bhushans, she said, were doing a
"national duty" and had a limited agenda to draft an effective
anti-corruption law.
There is overwhelming pressure on them not to give in, said Bedi,
who is part of the India Against Corruption group that mobilised
opinion for a strong anti-corruption law.
"We as people are appealing to the Bhushans not to give in," she
said.
"We are not going to run away from the field," said Right to
Information activist Kejriwal, who is also a member of the panel.
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