Hegde stays,his friends want probe

Anna Hazare is also starting a nationwide tour to meet people for the anti-corruption movement

A day after the governments clear message that it would not be swayed by any controversies,the non-government representatives on the drafting committee this evening decided to let the matter rest and not let hurdles come in the way of their objective to draft a strong Lokpal Bill.

Justice (retd) Santosh Hegde decided not to resign from the drafting committee of the Lokpal Bill as the five non-government representatives on the committee father-son duo of Shanti Bhushan and Prashant Bhushan,social activist Anna Hazare,Hegde and Arvind Kejriwal along with Kiran Bedi and Swami Agnivesh met today.

This was the first meeting after reports on the CD with the purported conversation between Shanti Bhushan and Mulayam Singh Yadav and the report in The Indian Express on the two farmhouse plots allotted to the Bhushan family by the Mayawati government.

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The Bhushans have said that the CD is doctored but a CFSL report,sought by Delhi Police,has said that the CD isnt tampered with.

The activists closed ranks today,saying they would focus their energy on the Lokpal Bill and not in responding to malicious allegations against them. Shri Santosh Hegde will continue to be an integral part of the movement and its drafting to see the Bill through, a statement issued after the meeting said.

The statement also said that the activists would write a joint letter to the Prime Minister and to the Chief Justice of India asking for an independent highest-level inquiry into any allegations being made against them.

Hegde himself felt targeted from some quarters and indicated that he would resign from the drafting committee that has five representatives each from the government and non-government sides.

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Amidst a free-for-all,the government extended an olive branch to the activists,with Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee saying that some of them had been a victim of smear campaign. This,and Congress president Sonia Gandhis letter to Anna Hazare a few days earlier re-stating her partys firm resolve to fight corruption,came as a facesaver for the group.

The activists today announced that public consultations would be held in various cities to invite suggestions and comments for the drafting of the Lokpal Bill. Anna Hazare is also starting a nationwide tour to meet people and garner support for the anti-corruption movement.