Mirrored: 31st of December 2011, 12:28 Original: www.ndtv.com Views: 119 Settings: Loading the mirror...
Link: canonical * NDTV * Profit * Khabar * Movies * Cricket * Good Times * Recipes _____________________ NDTV.com homepage Updated: December 31, 2011 16:57 IST * Home * Live TV * Video * India * Cities * World * Sports * Tech * Photos * Trends * Social * Weather * Games * Apps * Schedule * Music * Environment * Polls * Forums * News Alerts You are here: Home >> India>> Services : Astrology | Shopping | B2B | Property | e-Learning | Classifieds | Loans | Gifts Lokpal war: It was opposition's plan to 'scuttle' the Bill, says Chidambaram NDTV Correspondent, Updated: December 31, 2011 16:22 IST IFrame [IMG] email email [IMG] PLAYClick to Expand & Play [IMG] Mumbai: The war of words over what is now being called the 'Lokpal Bill fiasco' refuses to die down. Rather, it is only getting fierce. A day after the main opposition party, the BJP, alleged that the government manipulated the proceedings in the House to ensure that on Thursday night, the Lokpal Bill was not put to vote in the Rajya Sabha, the government today shot back and insisted that it was indeed the opposition's plant to "scuttle" the Bill through the "ingenious tool of 187 amendments." "The BJP refused to discuss the bill on the 28th. On the 29th, 187 amendments were introduced in the Rajya Sabha. The last of those were presented at 6 pm. Can anyone make sense of 187 amendments, analyze and classify them in such a short time span of time? I have never come across a situation where a Bill is passed in one House with a few amendments and it gets stuck in another House because the same parties now want 187amendments.I have never heard of this before (187 amendments in Rajya Sabha). That should have happened in the first House," Mr Chidambaram said, adding, "The moment they introduced that many amendments and did the last of it at 6, it was clear that their intention wasn't to pass the Lokpal Bill but to scuttle it...since they couldn't do so in Lok Sabha. BJP got into an understanding with two or three other political parties to come up with these amendments." "We had two options - to either change the character of the Bill and pass it or save the Bill. Fortunately, the Bill is safe. It is not defeated. We will take it up in the Budget Session," he said. When asked why the government did not accept the BJP's offer for an all-night session, Mr Chidambaram said, "Extending the session by a day would not have helped pass the amendments. There was no way we could have resolved the matter related to Lokpal at midnight. In no way the Bill would have become law as it would have gone to the Lok Sabha. Only prudent course before the government was to let the debate on Lokpal remain inconclusive so that it can be taken up in the Budget Session" At 11 pm on Thursday night, during the last stretch of the debate on the Lokpal Bill in the Rajya Sabha, the House slipped into chaos. Rajniti Prasad, a member of Lalu Prasad's RJD, flung papers around, provoking a 15-minute adjournment. When the House reconvened, the government said the vote would have to be deferred. Parliamentary Affairs Minister Pawan Bansal said the government needed time to go through the nearly 200 amendments that had been moved by different parties. The BJP has alleged that the commotion was "orchestrated" by the government because it knew it would lose the vote. And it's not just the opposition, anti-corruption crusader Anna Hazare and his team and even the government's key ally - the Trinamool Congress - have been unsparing in their assessment of the midnight chaos in the Rajya Sabha that ensured that no anti-corruption law was delivered in the Winter Session of Parliament. But the government insists that it did not let down either the country or Parliament and blames the BJP for the no-show. "RJD MP was a sideshow. Real obstacle was the BJP," Mr Chidambaram said today. Speaking about Trinamool Congress' publicly expressed displeasure over the way the Lokpal Bill issue was handled, the minister said, "We were taken by surprise (by TMC). We thought we had convinced them after redrafting a provision. But we failed to convince them. We are confident that between now and Budget Session, we will refine or redraft the provision and carry Trinamool along with us." He added that a provision may be redrafted "in order to accommodate" the Trinamool Congress. "We may have to refine and redefine. As far as passing the Bill in Rajya Sabha is concerned, we may accept one or two amendments. It will be the same Bill, with one or two amendments. We cannot accept 187 amendments, it will be an unrecognizable Bill," he said. On Thursday, Mamata Banerjee's party TMC moved two amendments asking for the anti-corruption Lokpal Bill to be purged of all references to Lokayuktas or state-level anti-corruption agencies. The Trinamool said the section on Lokayuktas in the Bill undermines the right of state governments to form their own graft laws. Despite reassurances and appeals from senior Congress leaders like Pranab Mukherjee, Ms Banerjee said she wanted her amendments to be put to vote. (With PTI Inputs) For NDTV Updates, follow us on Twitter or join us on Facebook Story first published: December 31, 2011 15:23 IST Tags: Chidambaram, Govt vs BJP, Hazare, Lokpal Bill, Lokpal Bill debate, Lokpal Bill war * Also See * We may accept one or two amendments to accommodate Trinamool: Government * ************************ ****** ****************** *********, ********* ****** ************ ********* ************ ********* : ********************* * BJP delegation to meet President over Lokpal Bill fiasco * Lokpal Bill fiasco: Government treated us sloppily, says Mamata's party * After lukewarm response to agitation, what next for Team Anna? [IMG] Opposition's plan to 'scuttle' Lokpal Bill: C ... [IMG] Historical moment lost by Hamid Ansari: Kiran ... [IMG] No Lokayukta: Anti-corruption body in Karnata ... [IMG] Lokpal fiasco: Govt to blame? [IMG] NDTV Special: 2011 people power [IMG] Have politicians failed us in the fight again ... [IMG] Democracy's midnight mayhem [IMG] Lokpal fiasco: Blame BJP, not Govt, says Pawa ... [IMG] Differences with allies, will speak to them, ... [IMG] 'Case of assassins blaming victims': Congress ... * Comments IFrame Comments IFrame Advertisement Advertisement Featured Services [IMG] Buy 'RAFA' Buy 'RAFA' Go Goa Go Goa Buy/Rent/Sell Property Buy/Rent/Sell Property Katy Perry-Download Music Katy Perry-Download Music Buy Samsung Galaxy S2 Buy Samsung Galaxy S2 Featured Car: Jaguar XK Featured Car: Jaguar XK Best Deals on Omega Best Deals on Omega Looking for restaurants? Looking for restaurants? Home loans today Home loans today [IMG] * Property Property * Travel Travel * Local Search Local Search * Find _____________________ In _____________________ Video Live TV * Democracy's midnight mayhem Democracy's midnight mayhem Democracy's midnight mayhem 47:22 * NDTV Special: 2011 people power NDTV Special: 2011 people power NDTV Special: 2011 people power 46:14 * Most entertaining songs of 2011 Most entertaining songs of 2011 Most entertaining songs of 2011 16:45 * Best and worst celebrity hosts of 2011 Best and worst celebrity hosts of 2011 Best and worst celebrity hosts of 2011 17:33 More >> Photos * Look who's off for the New Year Look who's off for the New Year * Dramatic cyclone images sent by surfers Dramatic cyclone images sent by surfers * Cyclone Thane leaves 33 dead Cyclone Thane leaves 33 dead More >> NDTV Social Become friends with your favourite NDTV people and shows. Start now >> * [IMG] Pankaj Pachauri Ode to 2011: ****** ********* ********* ****** *********- ************ ********* ****** *********, ****************** ********* ***************; ****** ****** ****** ************ ****** ********* ******************, ****** ****** *** ********* ****** ****** ************ 3 hours ago ReadReply * [IMG] Nikhil Naz Jai Jawan timings: 31st December- 11am on NDTV India & 7pm on NDTV 24X7. 6 hours ago ReadReply IFrame Related ************************ ****** ****************** *********, ********* ****** ************ ********* ************ ********* : ********************* -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- More From india >> We may accept one or two amendments to accommodate Trinamool: Government NDTV UPDATES WITH * * * * * * AlertPlease upgrade your flash player to view this content. Download the free Flash Player now! Get Adobe Flash Player Advertise | About Us | Feedback | Disclaimer | Investor | Complaint Redressal | Careers | Contact Us (c) Copyright NDTV Convergence Limited 2011. All rights reserved.