Sanction by higher authority for probe to be waived The Lokpal Bill joint drafting committee on Saturday moved towards formulation of a draft with civil society members and government representatives agreeing to set up an independent authority that will be endowed with financial and administrative autonomy. Although the sticky issue of including the Prime Minister and the higher judiciary within the ambit of the Bill was set aside for “further discussion,'' the...

While discussing the question of including the higher judiciary under the proposed anti-corruption Lokpal Bill, government representatives on the joint draft committee on Saturday pointed out that two former Chief Justices, M.N. Venkatachaliah and J.S. Verma, had opined in a public consultation that the higher judiciary should be kept out of the ambit of the bill. Members of the civil society cited instances where applications to look into charges of corruption...

The joint drafting committee on the Lokpal bill made some headway on Saturday on contentious procedures for sanction for prosecution of public servants. A broad consensus emerged over the need to review existing laws that have been criticized for shielding corrupt officials. Civil society sources on the panel said the proposed Lokpal may not require permission for prosecution while investigating offenses with amendments being considered to section 19 of the prevention...

As the joint drafting committee begins work on the Lokpal Bill, its civil society members face challenges from various quarters. AS the leader of the five-member civil society group within the 10-member joint drafting committee to prepare the new Lokpal Bill, Anna Hazare finds himself in an unenviable position. After his successful agitation for equal participation for civil society in the legislative exercise to create the first Lokpal at the Centre,...

To make storage space available for the fresh rabi harvest, the Union government has decided to allocate an additional 5 million tonnes of wheat and rice to the Below Poverty Line (BPL) population under the public distribution system (PDS). The Empowered Group of Ministers (EGoM), headed by Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee, cleared the Food Ministry's proposal at a meeting on Monday. The additional foodgrains will be made available from June 1 over...