Congress all ready for a vote game over Lokpal Bill

The Congress might be having problems in terms of securing a simple majority in the Rajya Sabha, but the party is confident of passing the trial of strength on any possible amendments that could be moved in the context of the Lokpal bill that is expected to come up for discussion and passage this week.

“This is precisely the spirit in which we have been stressing the primacy of parliament in the context of law making. The opposition parties have been talking of bringing in amendments to the bill, so let them table these, and we see no problem if these are also put to vote,” a cabinet minister said.

He pointed out that these amendments if voted by the Houses would be included in the bill, and in the process if the bill undergoes a change, then so be it. “We have worked hard towards arriving at a consensus, but if there are still some issues on which the opposition has a different view, then parliament is the only place to resolve them,” he added.

The party’s floor managers point out that though the opposition is very vocal in its criticism of the bill, it is quite unlikely that any opposition-sponsored amendment would pass muster in any of the two Houses. “There are disagreements among the opposition as well, and we do not foresee a possibility of all opposition parties coming together to vote on any single issue. So, depending on the amendment, we hope to attract the required votes in both the Houses to get a decision in our favour,” a government functionary said.