Times of India: Himanshi Dhawan:Monday, August 22, 2011.
NEW DELHI: Team Anna on Sunday put the ball firmly in the government's court, saying they were ready for talks. "If the government wants to talk to us, it should appoint a negotiator. We are open for talks. In order to open a door for dialogue... they have to create an atmosphere of trust by withdrawing the government's bill from Parliament and introduce the Jan Lokpal bill. We will not budge from our stand. This is the least they should do to earn our trust," Swami Agnivesh said.
However, it appeared that Team Anna's statements expressing willingness to talk were meant to counter the perception that they were inflexible and rigid while the PM was making attempts at reconciliation. Even as they said they were ready for a dialogue, the group ruled out any possibility of a climbdown from their stated position on inclusion of all bureaucracy, the PM and MPs' conduct in Parliament in the ambit of the Lokpal. On the issue of judiciary, both Kejriwal and Prashant Bhushan said the government must create an independent body to keep tabs on the judiciary and bring the law along with the Jan Lokpal bill.
The duo also dismissed Congress MP Pravin Aaron's move to submit the civil society version of the Lokpal bill to the standing committee as pointless. "It means nothing... we have already submitted our bill to the committee. Till it is tabled in Parliament... there is no significance,'' Bhushan said.
Faced with growing expressions of opposition from the Hazare camp, the government amplified its message that there could be significant changes in the government-approved Lokpal bill. "The dialogue process has already been initiated at various levels through well-wishers. This dialogue is at various levels which is not parallel to each other but complimentary to each other," Harish Rawat, minister of state for parliamentary affairs, said in Dehradun.
He said the Lokpal bill was before the standing committee and suggestions could be put before it. He also cited the example of the Right to Information (RTI) Bill where as many as 160 amendments were suggested by the committee. Significantly, all
the amendments were accepted, a fact attested by the main architect of the RTI Act and NAC member Aruna Roy.
"We are in favour of bringing the Lokpal bill on the lines of RTI bill where nearly 160 amendments were carried by the standing committee,'' Rawat said. Similarly, suggestions of Team Anna can be incorporated in the bill, he said.
Meanwhile, Team Anna sought to broaden the ambit of the agitation. On Saturday, Hazare said electoral reforms and land acquisition rights for farmers would be on their agenda. On Sunday, as many as 30 Arjuna awardees also made a show of support to Hazare by speaking against corruption in sports.
However, it appeared that Team Anna's statements expressing willingness to talk were meant to counter the perception that they were inflexible and rigid while the PM was making attempts at reconciliation. Even as they said they were ready for a dialogue, the group ruled out any possibility of a climbdown from their stated position on inclusion of all bureaucracy, the PM and MPs' conduct in Parliament in the ambit of the Lokpal. On the issue of judiciary, both Kejriwal and Prashant Bhushan said the government must create an independent body to keep tabs on the judiciary and bring the law along with the Jan Lokpal bill.
The duo also dismissed Congress MP Pravin Aaron's move to submit the civil society version of the Lokpal bill to the standing committee as pointless. "It means nothing... we have already submitted our bill to the committee. Till it is tabled in Parliament... there is no significance,'' Bhushan said.
Faced with growing expressions of opposition from the Hazare camp, the government amplified its message that there could be significant changes in the government-approved Lokpal bill. "The dialogue process has already been initiated at various levels through well-wishers. This dialogue is at various levels which is not parallel to each other but complimentary to each other," Harish Rawat, minister of state for parliamentary affairs, said in Dehradun.
He said the Lokpal bill was before the standing committee and suggestions could be put before it. He also cited the example of the Right to Information (RTI) Bill where as many as 160 amendments were suggested by the committee. Significantly, all
the amendments were accepted, a fact attested by the main architect of the RTI Act and NAC member Aruna Roy.
"We are in favour of bringing the Lokpal bill on the lines of RTI bill where nearly 160 amendments were carried by the standing committee,'' Rawat said. Similarly, suggestions of Team Anna can be incorporated in the bill, he said.
Meanwhile, Team Anna sought to broaden the ambit of the agitation. On Saturday, Hazare said electoral reforms and land acquisition rights for farmers would be on their agenda. On Sunday, as many as 30 Arjuna awardees also made a show of support to Hazare by speaking against corruption in sports.
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