Varanasi, Apr 15: Congress general secretary Digvijay Singh is not in favour of a strong Lokpal that can question the prime minister.
"Unlimited or supreme power cannot be vested in the Lokpal to take action against the prime minister who is elected through an electoral process," said Singh while talking to journalists here, reports TOI.
He added that a balancing approach is needed to deal with such things while drafting the Lokpal Bill. "The rights of 544 elected representatives of the Parliament cannot be ignored. Nevertheless, the Congress welcomes Anna Hazare's battle against corruption," he said.
Congress president Sonia Gandhi was the first who openly supported Hazare, he said.
"But only Lokpal is not enough to end corruption. Rather some stringent measures are needed to curb this menace," The Right to Information Act should be made more effective, and strict action should be taken against those politicians and bureaucrats whose assets are found more than their declared wealth," Singh said expressing hope that a strict law would come in force to tackle corruption.
He further stated that the Money Laundering Act has been effectively implemented in the regime of UPA government. Actions were taken against politicians like Madhu Koda, A Raza and others, he said adding that perhaps it is for the first time in the history after independence that ministers were sent to jail.
"Appropriate action has been taken in the 2G-spectrum case. Guilty persons have been put behind bars. But, the BJP's record on this front is suspicious," Congress leader said, asking why any legal action was not taken by the BJP-led government against Bangaru Laxman who was shown taking money. "The BJP patronised corrupt people," he alleged.
Anna Hazare praised Narendra Modi, but the fact is that the Modi government has not appointed any lokpal in the last seven years, Singh said adding that the names of Shanti Bhushan and Prashant Bhushan, members of the drafting committee, have also figured in a case of stamp duty.
"Anna Hazare should introspect while selecting the persons for drafting committee," said Singh. He, however, added that Hazare is a simple and honest man, but it is also speculated that he is supported by extreme rightist force like the RSS.
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