New Delhi, Dec 27 (IANS): The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) Tuesday punched holes in the government's Lokpal bill saying it was anything but a strong and effective law to deal with corruption in the country.
"It is patently unconstitutional (bill)… deeply flawed and tampers with the basics of our constitution," Leader of Opposition Sushma Swaraj told the Lok Sabha, initiating the debate on the Lokpal bill which was introduced in the house last week.
The BJP leader said the government has been compelled to introduce the bill that envisages the setting up of an effective anti-graft ombudsman.
"Remove your confusions first," Sushma Swaraj said, asking the government to tell the house if the creation of similar anti-corruption institutions in states was "mandatory or optional".
She said the government was speaking in two languages and referred to a media report quoting IT and Communications Minister Kapil Sibal that the provision of Lokayuktas was optional.
"But Mr (V) Narayanasamy (minister of state in the Prime Minister's Office) says it is mandatory," she said.
The BJP leader said the Lokpal bill "tampers with the federal structure" of India.
Her second objection to the proposed legislation was related to the provision of reservation in the Lokpal body.
She referred to the Supreme Court's repeated rulings that reservation cap should not be more than 50 percent.
The bill, she said, states that "not less than 50 percent" of nine members of the Lokpal body should be from reserved categories like the Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes, Other Backward Classes, minorities and women.
"Not less than 50 percent of nine is five and that makes it more than 50 percent. This violates the constitution," she said in her nearly 45-minute-long speech.
The BJP leader said the government also wanted to give constitutional status to the ombudsman but the constitution doesn't have any provision for reservation for constitutional posts.
Sushma Swaraj also objected to the reservation for minorities and said it was being done on the basis of religion.
"What we are doing today is not good for India. India was divided on the basis of religion. The idea of reservation on the basis of religion had then sown the seeds of division of India. You are sowing the second seed for another division," she said.
This remark led to a mini ruckus in the Lok Sabha.
She demanded that the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) should also be freed from the clutches of the government and brought under the control of an independent Lokpal.
"This is a very weak bill. We wanted the CBI to be free from the government clutches. But look what happened. The CBI remained where it was and the Lokpal also got into the clutches of the government," she said, referring to the selection mechanism of the Lokpal.
She demanded that the selection committee for Lokpal chairman and its members should include the leader of opposition in the Rajya Sabha.
According to the Lokpal bill, the selection committee consists of prime minister, Lok Sabha speaker, Lok Sabha leader of opposition, chief justice of India and an eminent jurist. "Why do we need an eminent jurist? Why not have the leader of opposition from the Rajya Sabha," she wondered.
Sushma Swaraj also said that the prime minister has been brought under the purview of the Lokpal but with "full protection so that nobody dares touch him or her".
Any decision of Lokpal to initiate preliminary inquiry or investigation against prime minister shall be taken only by the full bench with a three-fourths majority, she read from the bill objecting to the majority cap.
"Where does this three-fourths concept come from? Are we bringing in more transparency or removing it? Why are we bringing the prime minister at all then? Have the courage not to bring the bill under duress," she said.
The BJP leader said her party would support the bill if the government brings these changes "otherwise I request you with folded hands, return this bill and bring a fresh one in the next session."