Rahul pushes for Lokpal Bill

Flanked by Union Law Minister Kapil Sibal and Union Finance Minister P Chidambaram, Rahul Gandhi was hard pressed to clarify that it was not due to any pressure of the Aam Aadmi or the fast undertaken by Social Activist Anna Hazare, but it was due to the commitment of the Congress-led UPA government that they wanted the Bill to be passed.

Learning from the past mistakes, when he avoided the media, Rahul Gandhi was assertive in putting across his party line, saying that it was none else but the Congress that had brought the Right to Information (RTI) Act. Now. with the Lokpal legislation and seven more Bills, which complete the framework to fight corruption, it will weed out the menace from the country.

Leading from the front on the Lokpal, Rahul Gandhi said, “We would like the Opposition to cooperate with us. We have achieved broad consensus. We are 99 per cent there. Essentially all the parties should get together and close this.” He underscored the point that the Congress was keen to pass the Bill, but if it gets the support of all the parties, the Bill will see the light of the day. Rahul urged, “This is a matter of national importance. All parties should sit together and complete the work.”

Rejecting the view that the Congress has risen from the slumber only due to the pressure of Aam Admi Party, Rahul Gandhi informed that the Congress, in fact, has been working on the Bill “full time,” and needed the cooperation of all the parties to get the Bill passed. Flagging the Lokpal as the agenda of the Congress, Rahul Gandhi said that having taken the first step of bringing the RTI Bill, it was keen to pass the other legislations, seven of them, that are also in the pipeline.

Replying to a query on Anna Hazare, the Congress Vice-President said that undertaking fast was “his perspective,” but creating an infrastructure against corruption is their goal. He said that the Congress has almost completed the work on Lokpal. “What we need is 1 per cent movement from the political parties and we can accomplish the task and deliver the Lokpal Bill.”

After the rout of the Congress in four States, it was Rahul Gandhi, who, along with Congress President Sonia Gandhi, had declared that they would see a remarkable change in the working of the Congress party. Perhaps, this was the change that he was talking about, where he has decided to take the plunge and be more vocal on important issues. With the rise of the AAP and the assertive mood of the BJP, led by Narendra Modi, Rahul Gandhi can no longer afford to remain silent, especially when it had taken the initiative to draft the Lokpal Bill along with the representatives of Social Activist Anna Hazare.

The Congress would prefer to get the Bill passed on Monday itself by voice-vote, so that it could be sent to the Lower House in the amended form. Before the conclusion of the Winter Session of Parliament on December 20, the Congress is keen to get the Bill passed, aware that the BJP is similarly eager to take credit for the same.