Pranab to make a statement in LS tomorrow on Lokpal issue

Pranab Mukherjee seeks permission from Speaker Meira Kumar to make a statement in Lok Sabha on Saturday on the Lokpal issue.

Pranab Mukherjee's statement will form basis of a day-long discussion on Lokpal issue, parliamentary affairs Minister said.

Lok Sabha could discuss the Lokpal issue tomorrow after a statement on it either by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh or Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee.

The consensus emerged in a meeting of Leader of the House and all political parties in the office of Speaker Meira Kumar.

Minister of State for Parliamentary Affairs Harish Rawat said there is a likelihood that the discussion will start tomorrow after either of the two ministers make a statement as demanded by Opposition parties in the meeting.

Commenting on BJP's opposition to hold the discussion under rule 193, which does not entail voting, Rawat said that the Oppostion party's demand to discuss the matter under rule 184 that entails voting was an "after-thought".

He said that even in today's meeting a number of other political parties were not supportive of the demand for holding the discussion under rule 184.

Sources said that BJP gave two options to the government- either accept its demand for discussion under rule 184 or commence it in the House after a statement by the Prime Minister or the Finance Minister.

"A middle path is that begin the disucussion after a minister's statement. Let us not go either by rule 184 or rule 193," another Union minister said on the condition of anonymity.

Young Congress MPs Milind Deora, Jitin Prasada, Deepinder Singh Hooda and Sachin Pilot also discussed the issue with the Speaker.

Earlier, Union Ministers Kapil Sibal, Salman Khurshid, Pawan Kumar Bansal and Rajiv Shukla huddled for a meeting in Bansal's room.

The Parliamentary Affairs Minister later also had a meeting with Prime Minister Manmohan Singh.