New Delhi, Apr 17 (UNI) The Joint Draft Committee formed to prepare the Jan Lokpal (ombudsman) Bill against corruption held its first meeting that was audiographed, amid a controversy over a CD allegedly involving eminent lawyer and panel co-chairman Shanti Bhushan, while the next one is scheduled to be held on May 2.
Chaired by Union Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee yeseterday, the panel deliberated over the draft prepared by Mr Bhushan who putforth its salient features in front of all the members, Human Resource Development minister Kapil Sibal told mediapersons after the meeting that was held at the Finance Minister’s office in North Block, Ministry of Finance.
The discussion came in the backdrop of a controversy over a CD in circulation which purportedly has conversations with senior Bhushan, a former Law Minister, and Samajwadi Party chief Mulayam Singh Yadav and leader Amar Singh. Mr Bhushan has termed the CD as “clearly fabricated”.
Mr Sibal, also a member of the panel, said procedure of the draft meeting was also discussed in the meeting along with the future course of action.
” We want to come periodically in front of the public so that people would know that we all are going forward together and making all efforts to bring the Bill in the Monsoon Session,” he said and added that the proposed bill would be drafted through public consultations.
Lawyer Prashant Bhushan, among the civil activists team in the panel, however, said efforts would be made to hold the meet once a week.
The ten-member committee, formed after social activist Anna Hazare went on a 97-hour-long fast against corruption to demand a stronger Lokpal Bill, began the meet at 1130 hrs.
The meeting went on for almost one-and-a-half hour and was attended by all the ten members of the committee comprising five ministers and as many civil society representatives, under the chairmanship of Mr Mukherjee.
The other ministerial candidates include Law Minister Veerappa Moily, Home Minister P Chidambaram, Mr Sibal and Minority Affairs Minister Salman Khurshid. On the other hand, members from civil society include Mr Hazare, advocate Prashant Bhushan, Right To Information activist Arvind Kejriwal and former Supreme Court Judge N Santosh Hegde.
Last night after Mr Hazare and his team in the committee declared their assets, the activists made clear that they would press for making the Jan Lokpal Bill, prepared by them as the “working draft.”
The Bill seeks to bring within its ambit Prime Minister, Chief Justice of India and bureaucrats.
The civil society members had demanded that the proceedings of the meetings should be videographed for greater transparency and added that the proposed bill should be drafted through public consultations and that the government should give clause-wise objections to the Jan Lokpal Bill.
Mr Hazare had on April 9 called off his fast-unto-death agitation after government conceded his demand for a Joint Drafting Committee on the legislation. The government had issued a notification to form the joint committee according to which it will evolve its own procedure to prepare the proposed legislation by June 30.
–UNI