Lokpal bill likely to go back to Lok Sabha

According to a Congress minister, who is handling the party's floor management in the Rajya Sabha, the Congress party, as on 5.30 pm on Thursday, does not have enough votes to pass the Lokpal bill in the Upper House of Parliament.

He has almost thrown in the towel and it is almost certain that the Lokpal bill will be sent back to the Lok Sabha, with amendments brought in by the opposition parties.

It is quite clear that the non-Congress parties who are worried about the bill affecting the federal structure of India's polity, will vote against the bill.

The Congress party views the situation as quite hopeless because amendments brought in by the Trinamool Congress and the Bharatiya Janata Party will pass and have to be incorporated into the bill, that was passed by the Lok Sabha on Tuesday.

The gives rise to the interesting possibility that the bill if passed by the Rajya Sabha will be seen as the non-Congress parties' version of the Lokpal bill. Just like the one passed in the Lok Sabha is seen as the Congress version of the bill.

Can the Congress risk voting for such a bill?

In any case it looks certain that the bill will not be passed during this session and will have to be taken up by the Lok Sabha in the Budget session next year.