Not less than Prime Minister Manmohan Singh himself appealed Ramdev on Tuesday to call off his fast against black money.
Earlier Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee wrote to India’s richest yoga guru Ramdev, explaining all official policy and efforts taken by the government to combat black money.
Prime Minister Manmohan Singh has said that govt is making sincere efforts to check corruption and there is no need for Yoga Guru Ramdev to resort to agitation in the matter. He said, he has written to Baba Ramdev not to go ahead with his proposed agitation.
Reciprocating prime minister’s appeal Ramdev at press conference a press conference in Sehore said the Prime Minister and higher judiciary should be kept away from the Lokpal purview.
“All people holding constitutional posts should come under the Lokpal Bill. The inclusion of the Prime Minister and the Chief Justice of India is a tricky question. If questions are raised on the integrity of a person sitting at the head of a democracy, then how will democracy survive? And if you doubt the head of the judicial system then how can you assume that the Lokayukta will be more honest?” Ramdev said.
Ramdev word has brought much relief UPA at the time when civil society groups led by Anna Hazare is pressurising the government to bring prime minister and chief justice of India too in the ambit of Lokpal bill.
Within no time, the yoga guru’s statement was interpreted by the government representatives on the Lokpal draft committee as a split within the civil society.
The Government said that there was no unanimity on the Lokpal Bill and efforts are on to arrive at a consensus before the finalization of the draft legislation.
Briefing media Home Minister P Chidambaram and HRD Minister Kapil Sibal here they made it clear that the government was committed to bringing a Bill in the Monsoon session of Parliament.
They said that for widen consultations, the Centre has written to all Chief Ministers and leaders of political parties eliciting their views on issues including whether to bring the Prime Minister under Lokpal.
Chief Ministers and political parties have also been asked to give their opinion on whether the conduct of MPs inside Parliament-speaking or voting in the House be brought under the purview of Lokpal as they are protected under the Constitution.
Sibal, one of the members of the Committee, said “we are against any change in the Constitution provision relating to this”.
The other question that has been asked is whether government servants in states or Centre be subject to enquiry and disciplinary action including dismissal by Lokpal and Lokayukta.
Disagreeing with civil society activists of the JDC that yesterday’s meeting was a disaster, Chidambaram said “in our view it was a very constructive meeting…there was a very constructive discussion. That is how we take it”.
To a question on bringing the Prime Minister under the purview of Lokpal, the Home Minister said as a government the Union Cabinet has not taken a final view.
Meanwhile the BJP in a letter to the Prime Minister asked him to consider Ramdev’s black money campaign seriously. However, the BJP also stated that it was in favour of the Prime Minister being brought under the ambit of the Lokpal Bill.
BJP leader Sushma Swaraj said, “When Atal Bihari Vajpayee was the Prime Minister, he said that the Prime Minister should be brought under the ambit of Lokpal.”