Nobody but parliament will pass Lokpal bill: Advani

Senior Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader L.K. Advani Sunday said that ultimately it will be parliament which will pass the Lokpal bill.

“We definitely need a strong and effective Lokpal, there are no two ways about it. But the fact remains that the Lokpal bill will be passed by the parliament only,” Advani told reporters here.

“When we had met Anna Hazare and his team, we had pointed out some shortcomings in their version of the Lokpal bill which they admitted. Now I have no idea whether they have rectified any of those flaws or not,” he added.

Raising doubts about the government’s intention to pass the bill in the winter session of parliament, Hazare Saturday wrote to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh reiterating his threats of a renewed agitation from Dec 27.

Manmohan Singh later asserted that the government would try to pass the bill in the current session.