New Delhi:
The newly-constituted joint drafting committee of the Jan Lokpal Bill is likely to meet next week.
Union Law Minister M Veerappa Moily, who is also the convenor of the joint panel, said the first meeting is tentatively slated for April 16 but it depends on the availability of the ministers.
The ten-member committee comprising ministers and members of the civil society will get down to preparing the draft of the anti-corruption bill.
The draft bill is likely to be ready by June end because the government intends to introduce the Jan Lokpal Bill in the monsoon session of the Parliament that begins in July.
The joint committee for drafting the bill was formally notified by the government on Saturday following social activist Anna Hazare's fast-unto-death campaign demanding that the government introduce a bill to tackle corruption immediately, and that politicians alone not be in charge of drafting that bill. The government has agreed to most of his demands.
(Read: Who is Anna Hazare?)The government has agreed that the panel that will draft the Jan Lokpal Bill will include five representatives of civil society, including Mr Hazare, and five ministers. Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee will be the Chairman of the panel; and former Law Minister Shanti Bhushan, who has been picked by Mr Hazare, will be the co-Chairman.
(What is Jan Lokpal Bill?)Union Law Minister Veerappa Moily, Home Minister P Chidambaram, Telecom Minister Kapil Sibal and Minister for Minority Affairs Salman Khursheed will be the other government representatives on the panel.
Besides Shanti Bhushan, those representing civil society on the panel will be Anna Hazare himself, eminent lawyer Prashant Bhushan, retired Supreme Court Judge Santosh Hegde and RTI activist Arvind Kejriwal.
In a statement, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh described the coming together of civil society and government on the Lokpal Bill issue as "
a step that augurs well for democracy," saying it signifies the mutual resolve to combat corruption.
Enter your comment on India Against Corruption here or upload your video comment here.