UPA leaders discuss Lokpal bill drafts
June 21st, 2011 - 11:47 pm ICT by IANS
New Delhi, June 21 (IANS) Leaders of the United Progressive Alliance (UPA) held a meeting here Tuesday, where they were briefed by Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee about the deadlock in the drafting of the anti-graft Lokpal bill.
The meeting was attended by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, Congress president Sonia Gandhi, Trinamool Congress leader and West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee and other leaders.
Though DMK chief and former Tamil Nadu chief minister M. Karunanidhi was in town, he did not attend the meet and former union minister T.R. Baalu represented the party.
Union Minister and National Conference leader Farooq Abdullah told reporters that Mukherjee briefed the meeting about the two different drafts - one by the government and the other by the civil society representatives.
Mukherjee will discuss the two drafts with various political parties, he added.
The UPA leaders’ meet, held against the backdrop of the continuing differences over the Lokpal bill and raging corruption scandals, is viewed as a step by the UPA to put its house in order and to prepare for the monsoon session of parliament beginning Aug 1.
Earlier, a meeting of the 10-member joint drafting committee of the Lokpal bill ended without consensus with the government and the civil society presenting divergent drafts. Both the drafts will be sent to the union cabinet by June 30.
- Consensus eludes all-party meet on Lokpal bill (Second Lead) - Jul 03, 2011
- Ahead of June 30 deadline, uncertainty continues over Lokpal bill - Jun 25, 2011
- NDA, Left attend all-party Lokpal meeting (Lead) - Jul 03, 2011
- Broad consensus in UPA on Lokpal: Chidambaram - Dec 14, 2011
- All party meet on Lokpal bill ends amid differences (Lead) - Jul 03, 2011
- All-party meet on Lokpal bill Sunday (Lead) - Jul 03, 2011
- Deadlock between Team Hazare, government continues (Lead) - Jun 15, 2011
- All-party meeting on Lokpal bill Sunday - Jul 03, 2011
- Congress suggests all-party meeting on Lokpal Bill - Jun 18, 2011
- All-party meeting on Lokpal bill July 3 - Jun 22, 2011
- Will be on Lokpal committee with open mind: Khurshid - Apr 13, 2011
- Govt. reiterates its commitment to introduce strong Lokpal Bill - Apr 16, 2011
- Lokpal Bill: First joint drafting committee meet ends, next on May 2 - Apr 16, 2011
- Mukherjee seeks views on Lokpal bill; government says talks on right path (Lead) - May 31, 2011
- UPA leaders meet on Lokpal begins - Dec 13, 2011
Tags: bill drafts, conference leader, congress leader, congress president sonia gandhi, corruption scandals, farooq abdullah, m karunanidhi, mamata banerjee, manmohan singh, monsoon session, pranab mukherjee, prime minister manmohan, prime minister manmohan singh, progressive alliance, society representatives, tamil nadu, trinamool congress, union cabinet, union minister, west bengal