New Delhi, Aug 23: The BJP today asked the government to withdraw the present Lokpal Bill and introduce an “effective” bill in Parliament, but made it clear that some provisions of the Team Anna draft and the deadline set by it for passing the legislation were not acceptable to the party.
“If required, the government should withdraw the Lokpal Bill and introduce an effective bill. The present bill which is with the Standing Committee is feeble and ineffective,” BJP Deputy Leader in the Rajya Sabha S S Ahluwalia told reporters.
Asked if the Jan Lokpal Bill, prepared by Team Anna Hazare, was acceptable to the BJP, he said, “We agree with certain portions of the draft, while some parts can be improved upon. There are some provisions which cannot be acceptable to us at all.”
The BJP is also not in agreement with Team Anna that the bill should be passed by August 30, he said, adding Parliament procedures should be duly followed and this will take time.
The main opposition party appealed to the government to be “sensitive” towards Hazare's deteriorating health in view of his ongoing indefinite fast, and expedite the process of negotiations to reach a solution.
Interestingly, the BJP has opted to watch the developments between Team Anna and the government and not become a party to it till tomorrow's all-party meeting called by the Prime Minister.
“We do not know the agenda of the all-party meeting. What they are going to discuss... We have already ventilated our views on the issue,” Ahluwalia said. PTI
