Jan Lokpal bill details – The Common Man Speaks

Ever since Anna Hazare started protesting against the Lokpal Bill and the amendment of the Jan Lokpal Bill, he has received tremendous support from the masses of India. In fact, the numbers are increasing day by day with more and more people from all walks of life joining him.

However, there are many amongst us who are unaware about the difference between both the bills and why Jan Lokpal Bill is being favored by Hazare and his supporters. So, here’s some comparison between both the bills. This can also be an eye-opener for those who are unsure about supporting Anna.

(Source of the following table – http://www.spectralhues.com/2011/08/jan-lokpal-bill-vs-lokpal-bill-in-depth.html)

Subject	The Jan Lokpal Bill	Government’s Lokpal Bill
Prime Minister	Can be investigated with permission of seven member Lokpal bench.	PM cannot be investigate by Lokpal.
Judiciary	Can be investigated, though high level members may be investigated only with permission of a seven member Lokpal bench.	Judiciary is exempt and will be covered by a separate “judicial accountability bill”.
MPs	Can be investigated with permission of seven member Lokpal bench.	Can be investigated, but their conduct within Parliament, such as voting, cannot be investigated.
Lower bureaucracy	All public servants would be included.	Only Group A officers will be covered.
The CBI	will be merged into the Lokpal.	The CBI will remain a separate agency.
Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI)	Removal of Lokpal members and Chair Any person can bring a complaint to the Supreme Court, who can then recommend removal of any member to the President.	Any “aggrieved party” can raise a complaint to the President, who will refer the matter to the CJI.
Removal of Lokpal staff and officers	Complaints against Lokpal staff will be handled by independent boards set-up in each state, composed of retired bureaucrats, judges, and civil society members.	Lokpal will conduct inquiries into its own behavior.
Lokayukta	Lokakyukta and other local/state anti-corruption agency would remain in place.	All state anti-corruption agencies would be closed and responsibilities taken over by centralized Lokpal.
Whistleblower protection	Whistleblowers are protected law.	No protection granted to whistleblowers.
Punishment for corruption	Lokpal can either directly impose penalties, or refer the matter to the courts. Penalties can include removal from office, imprisonment, and recovery of assets from those who benefited from the corruption.	Lokpal can only refer matters to the courts, not take any direct punitive actions. Penalties remain equivalent to those in current law.
Investigatory powers	Lokpal can obtain wiretaps, issue rogatory letters, and recruit investigating officers. Cannot issue contempt orders.	Lokpal can issue contempt orders, and has the ability to punish those in contempt. No authority to obtain wiretaps, issue rogatory letters, or recruit investigating officers.[
False, frivolous and vexatious complaints	Lokpal can issue fines for frivolous complaints (including frivolous complaints against Lokpal itself), with a maximum penalty of 1 lakh.	Court system will handle matters of frivolous complaints. Courts can issue fines of Rs25,000 to 2 lakh.
Scope	All corruption can be investigated.	Only high-level corruption can be investigated.

I have been participating in Anna Hazare’s protest rallies for the amendment of Jan Lokpal bill in areas like Bandra and Dadar. But the protest which I attended at Azad Maidan was something special.

Till date, I had only heard of India’s freedom movement but looking at the current protest rallies for Hazare, I, along with many youngsters, got a golden opportunity of experiencing it, more so at Azad. The patriotic slogans, enthusiasm, dutiful activities of the general public made me wonder whether I am sent back to the pre-1947 era!

I got to know that a group of people, who were sitting on the stage, were also fasting along with Hazare. Despite that, they showed no signs of it. In fact, some even gave speeches expressing the need to protest with full enthusiasm. There were hundreds of others waiting to be on the podium.

Some volunteers were distributing postcards, which were to be sent to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh urging him to pass the Civil Society’s version of the Jan Lokpal Bill.

The most defining moment was when Mayank Gandhi, Mumbai in-charge of India Against Corruption (IAC), took stage. He explained the difference between the government version of Lokpal Bill and the version proposed by the Civil Society. After listening to it, I bet nobody would like to keep away from the protest!

I met a number of people who had taken leave from office and a large number of students who have been bunking college just to be a part of the movement. People from all religion, caste and class had united. All total strangers but still each other’s well-wishers as they were united by a single belief – revolution! Has India ever witnessed such scenes after Independence?

The most amazing and, even, unbelievable aspect of this protest is that not a single incident of even a minor violence is reported. In fact, in all these rallies I have not even once heard anyone abusing or using foul language, which is a fad these days.

This was the scene at just one rally. There are thousands of such rallies taking place all over India. The Congress Government better take the voice of the masses seriously else life will keep getting uglier for them.

As it is, we all know their mental condition right now. First they arrested Hazare, a step which turned out to be a humungous blunder! Then, their spokesperson Manish Tewari had to bear crores of slaps after accusing Hazare for being corrupt. Later, another spokesperson said the movement might be a tactic by the US. This became the biggest joke of the year.

Lastly, they accused Hazare of running away from the army during his younger days but this was proved otherwise by the Right To Information tool. These lineups of goof-up clearly indicate the state of mind of our government right now. A clear case of – Vinaash Kaal, Vipritt Buddhi!

Already unprecedented numbers of people have participated in the movement but it’s important to up the ante in order to show our government and other parties the mirror while keeping in mind the most important factor – non-violence!

Some more pictures during the protest: –