Congress delayed Lokpal bill by a year: Arun Jaitley

NEW DELHI: BJP on Saturday reacted strongly to Rahul Gandhi’s comments on Lokpal accusing Congress of shifting its stand over the issue. Leader of opposition in Rajya Sabha said soon after Rahul’s press conference that BJP was willing to pass the Lokpal bill in Rajya Sabha on Monday even without any discussion. “Government seems to have changed its heart again on the Lokpal bill. The bill should ideally have been passed in Rajya Sabha yesterday (Friday) itself. We reiterate our stand that it should be discussed and passed on Monday. If Congress and its allies do not allow the House to function, then we are ready to pass it without a debate,” Jaitley said.

BJP has underlined that the recommendations of the Select Committee of Rajya Sabha , which studied the Lokpal bill passed by the Lok Sabha earlier, are adequate and the new draft should be passed by the Upper House without much debate.

“In case there is no order in the House, I am ready to make my speech in the din,” Jaitley said.

While maintaining that the bill be passed in both Houses of parliament at the earliest, a couple of sticking points still remain and Jaitley insisted that BJP will not agree to these clauses.

It wants only the unanimous amendments of the Select Committee to be adopted . Jaitley said the government cannot interfere with the amendments made unanimously by the Select Committee. “Government cannot have the right to transfer a CBI officer who is still probing a case referred to the agency by the Lokpal. Secondly, it should be upto the Lokpal to decide whether an officer being investigated for corruption or having disproportionate assets should be given a hearing before or after the search and seizure,” Jaitley said.

Accusing the government of delaying passage of the bill, BJP said the Select Committee submitted its report a year ago but the bill has still not been brought to the House.