Kapil Sibal seeks support for education bill, BJP noncommittal

The government is going the extra mile to keep the opposition in good humour as it prepares to table crucial bills in parliament after April 15.

First it called an all-party meeting to evolve consensus on the women’s reservation bill, then PM tried to engage the opposition saying he was willing to relook the civil liability for nuclear damage bill and now it is learnt that HRD minister Kapil Sibal met BJP leader Murli Manohar Joshi on Wednesday to garner support for the foreign educational institutions (regulation of entry and operation) bill.

The bill, which will facilitate entry of foreign universities, had been kept on the backburner due to stiff opposition, particularly from the Left. Joshi, however, was noncommittal and said the decision to support or not will be taken by the party after studying the bill.
“Sibal wants us to support the bill. How can I do so without reading it carefully? I asked him to give me a copy of it [the bill], but he wasn’t keen. The bill is a public property. Why is the government hiding it? May be they are not confident of it,” he said.

The former HRD minister said the bill could damage the country’s education system and BJP would not allow its hasty passage.