This is in response to Human Chain @ IITB. To know more about the Jan Lokpal Bill – Jan Lokpal: A brief summary Disclaimer: The views expressed below do not necessarily state or reflect those of

History and background The basic idea of a Lokpal bill is to tackle corruption at the higher echelons of power and to create a just and honest work culture. The idea is borrowed from the office of Ombudsman in Scandinavian countries, where an ombudsman is a person who acts as a trusted intermediary between an organization and some internal or external constituency while representing not only but mostly, the broad scope of constituent interests. The Lokpal bill was first introduced by Shanti Bhushan (also a co-chairman of the current Lokpal Drafting committee) in 1968 and tabled in the 4th Lok Sabha in 1969. But it did not get through in the Rajya Sabha, the upper house of the Parliament of India. Subsequent versions were re-introduced in 1971, 1977, 1985, 1989, 1996, 1998, 2001, 2005 and in 2008, but none of them passed, mostly owing to dissolution of the parliament at various times. As Congress spokesperson Manish Tewari rhetorically puts it, “Government proposes, parliament disposes”. The Lokpal Bill issue picked up momentum when Gandhian activist Anna Hazare started a Satyagraha movement by commencing a fast unto death which apart from attracting a lot of attention and public support, also prompted Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to announce a re-introduction of the bill  in the 2011 monsoon session of the Parliament. Accordingly a truce was negotiated and a 10 member Drafting committee was formed, with 5 members sourced from the cabinet of ministers and 5 from the civil society, to be co-chaired by one member on each side. The Split The drafting committee’s two sides, the civil society and the cabinet ministers, shared a blow-hot-blow-cold relationship while drafting the bill. They could not reach an agreement as

Tired of seeing status messages saying there has been no progress since 1947 and our problems will always remain the same. Tired of listening to people saying “Is desh ka kuch nahi ho sakta”.  Tired

Early mornings are known to IITians only post a night-out and there are perhaps many of us who have never seen the sun rise since our lives began here. However, by the end, you invariably