New Delhi, July 31 (ANI): Stating that the 2G scam case is before courts, Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh today said the Parliament should not pre-judge it.
"The matter is before courts. It should be left to be decided by the court and Parliament should not pre-judge the issue," said Dr. Singh.
The Opposition BJP had mounted pressure on the Centre and demanded the resignation of Dr. Singh and Union Home Minister P. Chidambaram after former Telecom Minister A. Raja, presently lodged at the Tihar Jail here in connection with the 2G scam, told a Delhi court earlier this month that they were in the loop on decisions related to the release of 2G spectrum, and that he alone could not be an accused in the corruption-related case.
Commenting on veteran social activist Anna Hazare's forthcoming fast-unto-death protest over the draft Lokpal Bill on August 16, Dr. Singh said the Lokpal Bill will be decided by Parliament.
"As you know, we are ready with the Lokpal Bill. Lokpal Bill's fate will be decided by Parliament. In a democracy, Parliament is a sovereign body, it should be allowed to function and discharge its duty," he said.
Charging the government of bringing a fractured Lokpal Bill, Hazare had said on Thursday in Maharashtra's Ralegaon Siddi town that he would protest at Jantar Mantar in Delhi on August 16.
"The entire country will protest with me at Jantar Mantar on August 16...This is not Hazare's protest but the entire country's. The people need to look at this as a second fight for their freedom and they should all come out on the streets," Hazare said.
The Union Cabinet on Thursday approved the official draft of the Lokpal Bill and trashed the key proposals moved by Team Anna.
Dr. Singh also expressed hope that the government will overcome the issue of resignation of MPs and MLAs from the Telangana region over separate statehood demand.
The Telangana statehood demand gained momentum after over 100 MLAs and 15 MPs, cutting across party lines, submitted their resignations to respective presiding officers earlier this month.
The four-decade-old demand for Telangana, which seeks to carve out of the economically less developed part of Andhra Pradesh, gathered momentum last year after the Congress-led UPA Government accepted the demand in principle.
Several protests and shutdowns had brought Andhra Pradesh to a near halt in 2009 and 2010, as pro-Telangana activists persisted with their demand.
The Prime Minister was speaking to mediapersons on the sidelines of an all-party meeting convened by Lok Sabha Speaker Meira Kumar ahead of the Monsoon Session of Parliament beginning tomorrow. (ANI)
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