an Lokpal Bill From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia The Jan Lokpal Bill, also referred to as the citizens'

ombudsman bill, is a prop osed independent anti-corruption law in India. Anti-corruption social activists proposed it as a more effective improvement to the original Lokpal bill, which i s currently being proposed by the Government of India.[1] The Jan Lokpal Bill aims to effectively deter corruption, redress grievances of citizens, and protect whistle-blowers. If made into law, the bill would create a n independent ombudsman body called the Lokpal (Sanskrit: protector of the peopl e). It would be empowered to register and investigate complaints of corruption a gainst politicians and bureaucrats without prior government approval.[2][3][4] In April 2011, civil activist Anna Hazare started a Satyagraha movement by comme ncing an indefinite fast in New Delhi to demand the passing of the bill. The mov ement attracted attention in the media, and hundreds of thousands of supporters, in part due to the organizational skills of Arvind Kejriwal.[5] Following Hazar e's four day hunger strike, Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh stated that the bill would be re-introduced in the 2011 monsoon session of the Parliament.[6] A ccordingly, a committee of five Cabinet Ministers and five social activists atte mpted to draft a compromise bill merging the two versions but failed. The Indian government went on to propose its own version in the parliament, which the acti vists rejected on the grounds of not being sufficiently effective, and called it a "toothless bill".[7] Contents [hide] 1 Background 2 Key features of proposed bill 3 Difference between governments and activist drafts 3.1 Highlights 3.2 Details 4 Timeline of Lokpal and cost 5 Campaign for the Jan Lokpal Bill Phase 1 5.1 Fast & Agitation 5.2 Drafting Committee 5.3 Fast & Agitation Phase 2 5.4 Notable supporters and opposition 6 Criticisms of the Jan Lokpal Bill 6.1 Nave approach 6.2 Extra-constitutional 6.3 Scope 6.4 Criticism from Aruna Roy, Arundhati Roy and NCPRI 7 Support for the Bill 7.1 Surveys 7.2 Legislator support 7.3 Social media 7.4 Online surveys 8 Parliamentary actions on the proposed legislation 9 See also 10 References 11 External links [edit]Background The word Lokpal was coined in 1963 by L.M.Singhvi, a Member of Parliament during a debate in Parliament about grievance redressal mechanisms. His son Dr. Abhish ek Singhvi is now the head of the Parliamentary Standing Committee reviewing the bill.[8] The prefix Jan (translation: citizens) was added to signify the fact t hat these improvements include input provided by "ordinary citizens" through an activist-driven, non-governmental public consultation.[9][10] The Lokpal bill was first introduced by Shanti Bhushan in 1968[11] and passed th e 4th Lok Sabha in 1969. But before it could be passed by Rajya Sabha, Lok Sabha was dissolved and the bill lapsed.[12] The Subsequent versions were re-introduc ed in 1971, 1977, 1985, 1989, 1996, 1998, 2001, 2005 and in 2008,[13] but none o

f them passed. The bill was inspired by the Hong Kong Independent Commission Aga inst Corruption (ICAC).[14][15] [edit]Key features of proposed bill Some important features of the proposed bill are:[9] To establish a central government anti-corruption institution called Lokpal, sup ported by Lokayukta at the state level. As in the case of the Supreme Court and Cabinet Secretariat, the Lokpal will be supervised by the Cabinet Secretary and the Election Commission . As a result , it will be completely independent of the government and free from ministerial in fluence in its investigations. Members will be appointed by judges, Indian Administrative Service officers with a clean record, private citizens and constitutional authorities through a trans parent and participator process. A selection committee will invite short-listed candidates for interviews, videor ecordings of which will thereafter be made public. Every month on its website, the Lokayukta will publish a list of cases dealt wit h , brief details of each, their outcome and any action taken or proposed. It wi ll also publish lists of all cases received by the Lokayukta during the previous month, cases dealt with and those which are pending. Investigations of each case must be completed in one year. Any resulting trials should be concluded in the following year, giving a total maximum process time o f two years. Losses to the government by a corrupt individual will be recovered at the time o f conviction. Government officework required by a citizen that is not completed within a presc ribed time period will result in Lokpal imposing financial penalties on those re sponsible, which will then be given as compensation to the complainant. Complaints against any officer of Lokpal will be investigated and completed with in month and, if found to be substantive, will result in the officer being dismi ssed within two months. The existing anti-corruption agencies [CVC], departmental vigilance and the anti -corruption branch of the [CBI] will be merged into Lokpal which will have compl ete power authority to independently investigate and prosecute any officer, judg e or politician. Whistleblowers who alert the agency to potential corruption cases will also be p rovided with protection by it. [edit]Difference between governments and activist drafts [edit]Highlights Difference between Jan Lokpal Bill and Draft Bill 2010[16] Jan Lokpal Bill (Citizen's Ombudsman Bill) Draft Lokpal Bill (2010) Lokpal will have powers to initiate suo motu action or receive complaints of cor ruption from the general public. Lokpal will have no power to initiate su o motu action or receive complaints of corruption from the general public. It ca n only probe complaints forwarded by the Speaker of the Lok Sabha or the Chairma n of the Rajya Sabha. Lokpal will have the power to initiate prosecution of anyone found guilty. Lokpal will only be an Advisory Body with a role limited to forwarding reports t o a "Competent Authority". Lokpal will have police powers as well as the ability to register FIRs. Lokpal w ill have no police powers and no ability to register an FIR or proceed with crim inal investigations. Lokpal and the anti corruption wing of the CBI will be one independent body. The CBI and Lokpal will be unconnected. Punishments will be a minimum of 10 years and a maximum of up to life imprisonme nt. Punishment for corruption will be a minimum of 6 months and a maximum of up to 7 years. [edit]Details The following table details differences between the Government and activist back

ed versions.[17][18][19] Comparison SlideShow uploaded by India Against Corruption.[20] Issue The Jan Lokpal Bill[10] Government's Lokpal Bill[1] Prime Minister PM can be investigated with permission of seven member Lokpal be nch.[clarification needed][17] PM can be investigated by Lokpal after she/he va cates office.[21] Judiciary Can be investigated, though high level members may be investigat ed only with permission of a seven member Lokpal bench.[clarification needed][17 ] Judiciary is exempt and will be covered by a separate "judicial accounta bility bill".[18] Conduct of MPs Can be investigated with permission of seven member Lokpal bench .[clarification needed][17] Can be investigated, but their conduct within Pa rliament, such as voting, cannot be investigated.[18] Lower bureaucracy All public servants would be included.[18] Only sen ior officers (Group A) will be covered.[18] Anti-corruption wing of the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) The Anti -corruption wing of the CBI will be merged into the Lokpal.[18] The Anti-corrupt ion wing of the CBI cannot be merged into the Lokpal.[17] Removal of Lokpal members and Chair Any person can bring a complaint to the Supreme Court, who can then recommend removal of any member to the President.[17 ] Any "aggrieved party" can raise a complaint to the President, who will r efer the matter to the CJI.[17] Removal of Lokpal staff and officers Complaints against Lokpal staff will be handled by independent boards set-up in each state, composed of retired bureaucr ats, judges, and civil society members.[17] Lokpal will conduct inquiries in to its own behaviour.[17] Lokayukta Lokayukta and other local/state anti-corruption agency would rem ain in place.[18] All state anti-corruption agencies would be closed and r esponsibilities taken over by centralised Lokpal.[18] Whistleblower protection Whistleblowers are protected by Lokpal.[17] No protection granted to whistleblowers by Lokpal Mahima.[17] Punishment for corruption Lokpal can either directly impose penalties, or refer the matter to the courts. Penalties can include removal from office, impri sonment, and recovery of assets from those who benefited from the corruption.[17 ] Lokpal can only refer matters to the courts, not take any direct punitiv e actions. Penalties remain equivalent to those in current law.[17] Investigatory powers Lokpal can obtain wiretaps ( to make a connection to a t elegraph or telephone wire in order to obtain information secretly), issue rogat ory letters, and recruit investigating officers. Cannot issue contempt orders.[1 7] Lokpal can issue contempt orders, and has the ability to punish those in contempt. No authority to obtain wiretaps, issue rogatory letters, or recruit i nvestigating officers.[17] False, frivolous and vexatious complaints Lokpal can issue fines for frivo lous complaints (including frivolous complaints against Lokpal itself), with a m aximum penalty of Rs 100,000.[17] Court system will handle matters of friv olous complaints. Courts can give 2 5 years imprisonment and fines of Rs 25,000 to 200,000.[20] NGOs NGOs not within the scope due to their role in exposing corruption.[19] NGOs are within the scope and can be investigated.[19] [edit]Timeline of Lokpal and cost 1968 Rs 3 lakh[22] (300,000) 1971 Rs 20 lakh (2 million) 1977 Rs 25 lakh (2.5 million) 1985 Rs 25 lakh 1989 Rs 35 lakh (3.5 million) PM under lokpal 1996 Rs 1 crore (10 million) PM under lokpal 2001 Rs 1.5 crore (15 million) PM under lokpal 2011 Rs 1700 crore[22] (17 billion) [edit]Campaign for the Jan Lokpal Bill

Lokpal activist Anna Hazare Main article: 2011 Indian anti-corruption movement The first version of the Lokpal Bill drafted by the Government of India in 2010 was considered ineffective by anti-corruption activists from the civil society.[ 23] These activists, under the banner of India Against Corruption, came together to draft a citizen's version of the Lokpal Bill later called the Jan Lokpal.[23 ] Public awareness drives[24] and protest marches[23] were carried out to campai gn for the bill. However, public support for the Jan Lokpal Bill draft started g athering steam after Anna Hazare, a noted Gandhian announced that he would hold an indefinite fast from 5 April 2011 for the passing of the Lokpal/Jan Lokpal bi ll.[6][25][26] The government has however accepted it. To dissuade Hazare from going on an indefinite hunger strike, the Prime Minister 's Office directed the ministries of personnel and law to examine how the views of society activists can be included in the Lokpal Bill.[27] On 5 April, the Nat ional Advisory Council rejected the Lokpal bill drafted by the government. Union Human Resource Development Minister Kapil Sibal then met social activists Swami Agnivesh and Arvind Kejriwal on 7 April to find ways to bridge differences over the bill.[28] However, no consensus could be reached on 7 April owing to severa l differences of opinion between the social activists and the Government. [edit]Fast & Agitation Phase 1 On 7 April 2011 Anna Hazare called for a Jail Bharo Andolan (translation: Fill j ail movement) from 13 April to protest against Government's rejection of their d emands.[29] Anna Hazare also claimed that his group has received six crore (60 m illion) text messages of support[30] and that he had further backing from a larg e number of Internet activists. The outpouring of support was largely free of po litical overtones; political parties were specifically discouraged from particip ating in the movement.[31] The fast ended on 9 April, after 98 hours, when the G overnment accepted most demands due to public pressure. Anna Hazare set an 15 Au gust deadline for the passing of the bill in the Parliament,[32] failing which h e would start a hunger strike from 16 August. The fast also led to the Governmen t of India agreeing to setting up a Joint Drafting Committee, which would comple te its work by 30 June.[32] [edit]Drafting Committee The drafting committee was officially formed on 8 April 2011. It consisted of th e following ten members, including five from the government and five drawn from the civil society.[33][34] Member Qualifications and status Pranab Mukherjee Finance Minister, Co-Chairman Shanti Bhushan Former Minister of Law and Justice, Co-Chairman P. Chidambaram Minister of Home Affairs Veerappa Moily Minister of Corporate Affairs Kapil Sibal Minister for Communications and Information Technology Salman Khursid Minister of Law Anna Hazare Social Activist Prashant Bhushan Lawyer N. Santosh Hegde Former Lokayukta (Karnataka) and Supreme Court Justice Arvind Kejriwal RTI Activist. The Government's handling of the formation of the draft committee, involving the civil society in preparation of the draft Lokpal bill, was criticised by variou s political parties including BJP, BJD, TDP, AIADMK, CPI-M, RJD, JD(U) and Samaj wadi Party.[35][36] The committee failed to agree on the terms of a compromise bill and the governme nt introduced its own version of the bill in the parliament in August 2011.[37] [edit]Fast & Agitation Phase 2 Hindi Sign at Ramlila Grounds

However, the Joint Drafting Committee failed to reach a conclusion and the five members of the Government on the panel came up with their own version of the bil l, which was considered by Anna and his team as weak and will facilitate the cor rupt to go free apart from several other differences. To protest against this, A nna Hazare announced an "Indefinite Fast" (not to be confused with "Fast unto de ath"). Anna and his team asked for permission from Delhi Police for their fast a nd agitation at Jantar Mantar or JP Park. Delhi Police gave its permission with certain conditions. These condition were considered by team Anna as restrictive and against the fundamental constitutional rights and they decided to defy the c onditions. Delhi Police imposed sec 144 CrPC.[38][39] On 16 Aug, Anna Hazare was taken into preventive custody by Delhi Police. Senior officers of Delhi Police reached Anna Hazare's flat early in the morning and in formed him that he could not leave his home. However, Hazare turned down the req uest following which he was detained.Anna in his recorded address to the nation before his arrest asked his supporters not to stop the agitation and urged the p rotesters to remain peaceful.Other members of "India Against Corruption", Arvind Kejriwal, Kiran Bedi, Kumar Vishwas and Manish Sisodia were also taken into pre ventive custody. Kiran Bedi described the situation as resembling a kind of Emer gency (referring to the Emergency imposed in 1975 by the Indira Gandhi Govt.).[3 9] The arrest resulted in huge public outcry and under pressure the government rele ased him in the evening of 16 Aug. However, Anna Hazare refused to come out of J ail, starting his indefinite fast from Jail itself. Manish Sisodia explained his situation as, "Anna said that he left home to go to JP Park to conduct his fast and that is exactly where he would go from here (Tihar Jail). He has refused to be released till he is given a written, unconditional permission". Unwilling to use forces owing to the sensitive nature of the case, the jail authorities had no option but to let Anna spend the night inside Tihar. Later on 17 Aug, Delhi P olice permitted Anna Hazare and team to use the Ramlila Maidan for the proposed fast and agitation withdrawing most of the contentious provisions they had impos ed earlier.[40] The indefinite fast and agitation began in Ramlila Maidan, New D elhi, and went on for around 288 hours (12 days from 16-August-2011 to 28-August -2011).[41] Some of the Lokpal drafting committee members became dissatisfied wi th Hazare's tactics as the hunger strike went on for the 11 th day: Santosh Hegd e, a member of Hazare team who headed the Karnataka Lokayukta, strongly criticis ed Hazare for his insistence of "having his way", concluding I feel I am not in T eam Anna any more by the way things are going. These (telling Parliament what to do) are not democratic things. [42] Swami Agnivesh, another central figure in the Hazare group also distanced himself.[43] [edit]Notable supporters and opposition Union HRD[clarification needed] Minister Kapil Sibal, a notable critic of the ci tizens' version of the Bill In addition to the activists responsible for creating and organising support for the bill, a wide variety of other notable individuals have also stated that the y support this bill. Spiritual leaders Sri Sri Ravi Shankar[44] and Yog Guru Ram dev[45] expressed support. Notable politicians who indicated support for the bil l include Ajit Singh[46] and Manpreet Singh Badal[47] as well as the principal o pposition party, Bharatiya Janta Party.[48][49] In addition, numerous Bollywood actors, directors, and musicians publicly approved of the bill.[50][51][52][53][ 54][55][56][57] Notable opposition to the activists' version of the Bill was expressed by HRD mi nister Kapil Sibal and other Congress leaders; Chief Minister of West Bengal Mam ta Banerjee; Punjab Chief Minister and Akali Dal leader Prakash Singh Badal; Shi v Sena leader Bal Thackeray, and former Chief Justice of the Supreme Court Jagdi sh Sharan Verma.[58] Although BJP showed their support earlier, there were repor ts that BJP shared Congress's concern "over letting the civil society gain the u pper hand over Parliament in lawmaking".[59] The All-India Confederation of SC/S T Organisations, representing the Dalits and backward castes, also expressed opp

osition to the bill proposed by Anna Hazare as well as to the government's versi on of the bill. The confederation opposed Hazare's proposed bill saying that it will be above the constitution and that proposers of the bill have support from elements who oppose reservation.[60] [edit]Criticisms of the Jan Lokpal Bill [edit]Nave approach The bill has been criticised as being nave in its approach to combating corruptio n. According to Pratap Bhanu Mehta, President of the Center for Policy Research Delhi,[61] the bill "is premised on an institutional imagination that is at best nave; at worst subversive of representative democracy". The very concept of a Lo kpal concept has received criticism from HRD minister Kapil Sibal in that it wil l lack accountability, be oppressive and undemocratic.[62] [edit]Extra-constitutional The pro-bill activist Arvind Kejriwal rejects the claim of Lokpal being extra-co nstitutional with the explanation that the body will only investigate corruption offences and submit a charge sheet which would then tried and prosecuted throug h trial courts and higher courts, and that other bodies with equivalent powers i n other matters exist. The proposed bill also lists clear provisions for the Sup reme Court to abolish the Lokpal.[63] Despite these clarifications, critics feel that the exact judicial powers of Lok Pal are rather unclear in comparison with its investigative powers. The bill[64] requires "...members of Lokpal and the officers in investigation wing of Lokpal shall be deemed to be police officers". Although some supporters have denied an y judicial powers of Lokpal,[65] the government and some critics have recognised Lokpal to have quasi-judicial powers.[66] The bill also states that "Lokpal shall have, and exercise the same jurisdiction powers and authority in respect of contempt of itself as a High court has and m ay exercise, and, for this purpose, the provisions of the Contempt of Courts Act , 1971 (Central Act 70 of 1971) shall have the effect subject to the modificatio n that the references therein to the High Court shall be construed as including a reference to the Lokpal."[67][68][69] Review of proceedings and decisions by L okpal is prevented in the bill by the statement "...no proceedings or decision o f the Lokpal shall be liable to be challenged, reviewed, quashed or called in qu estion in any court of ordinary Civil Jurisdiction.". As a result, how the trial s will be conducted is unclear in the bill, although the bill outlines requiring judges for special courts, presumably to conduct trial that should be completed within one year. The critics hence express concern that, without judicial revie w, Lokpal could potentially become an extra-constitutional body with investigati ve and judicial powers whose decisions cannot be reviewed in regular courts.[70] [edit]Scope The matter of whether the Indian Prime Minister and higher judiciary should or s hould not be prosecutable by the Lokpal remains as one of the major issues of di spute. Anna's own nominee for co-chairing the joint panel Justice Verma, the for mer Chief Justice of the Supreme Court, has expressed his constitutional objecti ons for including the Prime Minister and higher judiciary under Lokpal.[71] Acco rding to him, "this would foul with the basic structure of the constitution".[72 ] [edit]Criticism from Aruna Roy, Arundhati Roy and NCPRI Critic Aruna Roy Magsaysay Award winner Aruna Roy who has said "Vesting jurisdiction over the len gth and breadth of the government machinery in one institution will concentrate too much power in the institution, while the volume of work will make it difficu lt to carry out its tasks". She and her colleagues at the National Campaign for People's Right to Information (NCPRI) have proposed an alternative mechanism con sisting of five institutions.[73] Noted author and social activist Arundhati Roy was highly critical of Lokpal, stating "you could say that the Maoists and the Jan Lokpal Bill have one thing in common they both seek the overthrow of the Ind

ian State", and "While his means may be Gandhian, Anna Hazare's demands are cert ainly not. Contrary to Gandhiji's ideas about the decentralisation of power, the Jan Lokpal Bill is a draconian, anti-corruption law, in which a panel of carefu lly chosen people will administer a giant bureaucracy,.."[74][75][76] [edit]Support for the Bill [edit]Surveys India Against Corruption conducted a survey on the draft Lokpal Bill presented b y the Indian Government in parliament. It showed that 85% of the particpiants we re opposed to the government's bill. The team especially cited the results from the Chandni Chowk constituency, the constituency of Telecom Minister Kapil Sibal , who is a vehement voice for the government's version of the bill.[77][78] According to a nationwide survey conducted by CNN-IBN & CNBC-TV18 and published in early August, only a shade over a third of respondents have heard of Lokpal. 34% of all respondents said they have heard of the ombudsman and only 24% knew w hat it actually means.[79] Prashant Bhushan, one of Anna Hazare's associates and a drafter of the Jan Lokpa l Bill, has demanded a nation-wide referendum on the Jan Lokpal Bill to gauge th e mood of the nation.[80] [edit]Legislator support Post the massive support to Anna Hazare's movement, several of the MPs across pa rty lines have come out in support to the Jan Lokpal Bill. Most notable names ar e Congress MPs from Maharashtra Priya Dutt and Datta Meghe.[81][82] Datta Meghe also demanded that his party spokesperson Manish Tiwari should apologise to Anna Hazare for his uncharitable comments.[81] This support started coming as over 150 MPs and Ministers from different states were forced to remain confined to their houses as Anna supporters protested outs ide their houses. Protests were also seen outside the residence of Sheila Dixit CM of Delhi, Kapil Sibal, Pranab Mukherjee amongst others.[81][82][83] BJP MP Varun Gandhi is introducing Jan Lokpal Bill as a private member's bill in the parliament.[84] [edit]Social media As per the reports, Anna Hazare's fast was successful in mobilising the support of thousands in the virtual world of social media. On Independence Day, Anna had over 500,000 mentions through status updates and comments across top social net working sites, including Facebook and Twitter in the country. Two days later, th e number had shot up to 9 million.On YouTube, over 40,000 people watched the vid eo shot by Kiran Bedi inside Tihar Jail in which Anna has addressed his supporte rs. Facebook has 542 fan pages by Anna's name.[85][86] [edit]Online surveys According to the survey conducted by STAR News and Nielsen, 87% of the 8900 resp ondents of the survey supported the Jan Lokpal Bill. The survey conducted in 28 cities across the country, including all four metros mainly deals with three imp ortant points: public s knowledge about the Lokpal Bill; awareness about Anna s camp aign; and the perceived problems with the Jan Lokpal Bill.[87] Over a million people joined the Times of India online anti-graft campaign, in o ne of the biggest ever voting exercises in the virtual world. The news analysis points that citizens want to make their voices heard and have found the platform offered by the campaign a viable one to do so.[88] [edit]Parliamentary actions on the proposed legislation Main article: 2011 parliamentary debate on anti-corruption legislation On 27 August 2011, a special and all exclusive session of Parliament was conduct ed and a resolution was unanimously passed after deliberations in both the house s of Indian Parliament by sense of the house.[89][90] The resolution, in principle, agreed on the following subjects and forwarded the Bill to related standing committee for structure and finalise a report:[91][92] A citizen charter on the bill An appropriate mechanism to subject lower bureaucracy to lokpal The establishment of Lokayuktas (ombudsmen at state level) in states

Anna Hazare, civil rights activists along with protestors at site of the fast we lcomed this development on being informed, terming it as a battle "half won" whi le ending the protest.[91]