CUTTACK: Rejecting the Lokpal Bill tabled in Parliament, people from all walks of life on Thursday joined hands to hold a Padayatra from Cuttack to Bhubaneswar, where they burnt copies of the Bill to raise pitch for a strong and effective anti-corruption law as proposed by team Anna Hazare. Under the banner of India Against Corruption, social activists, prominent personalities, commoners, students and members of various organisations staged a march to the Capital denouncing the Union Government for pushing a law that was not only weak but also anti-poor in its structure. They were joined by the locals en route. At PMG square, they burnt copies of the Bill amid sloganeering against the Government. The activists submitted a memorandum to the Governor seeking a strong Lokpal Bill that includes all public servants from the highest to the owest. They pressed for bringing the Prime Minister under Lokpal purview. The law should enforce condign punishment and should be non-discriminatory. The Lokpal should be completely independent and investigations transparent and held in a time-bound manner, they demanded. Mobilising support for Anna Hazare, the organisation has decided to stage fasts in all the 30 district headquarters as well as towns and cities on August 16, when Anna has announced that he would start his hunger strike. “We have been flooded with volunteers from across the State, who have expressed readiness to go on fast in solidarity with Anna Hazare,” convenor Abhisek Joshi said. Besides, people have been called upon to switch off all lights in their houses and remain in darkness for an hour from 8 pm on August 15 to protest the Government’s diluted Lokpal Bill. Protests and demonstration would also be held on August 9 (Quit India movement) to symbolically press for eradication of corruption, Joshi said.
Comments
0 comment