Govt draft on Lok Pal excludes PM

The government draft on Lok Pal Bill, which is expected to be considered by the Cabinet this week, does not include the Prime Minister in the purview of the Ombudsman but the final call on the ticklish issue will be taken by Parliament and its Standing Committee.

Disclosing this, Home Minister P Chidambaram said the Bill would be introduced in Parliament in the Monsoon session starting on August one.

The government's draft has been prepared by the Department of Personnel and Training (DoPT), which is the nodal ministry, and the issue is likely come up before Cabinet this week or early next week.

"Once the Cabinet approves the draft, with or without changes, that is the government's draft that will be introduced in Parliament. So we will introduce the Lok Pal Bill in the Monsoon session of Parliament," he told PTI here.

On the controversial question of bringing the Prime Minister's post in the ambit of Lok Pal, Chidambaram said, "According to present thinking, and subject to change by the Cabinet, the government's draft keeps out the Prime Minister. ...Our considered view at the moment, subject to change by the Cabinet, is that the PM should be kept out of Lok Pal."

The Home Minister noted that there are several arguments for and against keeping the Prime Minister out of the ambit of the anti-corruption watchdog.

"Each one is a reasonable point of view. Ultimately, it is for the government to adpot a point of view and introduce it in Parliament. The Standing Committee can change it, Parliament can change it," he underlined.