85% people support Jan Lokpal Bill And You?

Announcing the results of the "referendum" on Lokpal Bill conducted in capital's Chandni Chowk, the Lok Sabha constituency from where HRD Minister Kapil Sibal was elected, Team Anna said that 85% of those who cast their vote have supported the Jan Lokpal Bill.

Addressing a press conference here, Monday, Arvind Kejriwal said, “85% people supported the Jan Lokpal Bill. 88% want the Lokpal to have powers to investigate conduct of MPs inside Parliament. 82% and 86% people want the Prime Minister and judiciary to be under the ambit of the Lokpal. Only 6% were against the inclusion of PM under the Lokpal.”

Kejriwal said that the referendum was only meant to prove a point and if Kapil Sibal has any doubts about the veracity of the poll, then he should convene a public meeting in his constituency and know firsthand what the people want.

He also pointed out that, as per the survey, 86% people in Sibal’s constituency want their MP to go by their wish on the issue and not by the orders of the party High Command.

Volunteers of the India Against Corruption initiative opened a centre each in all wards of the constituency, then forms were dropped in each home, the filled up form was collected later. The survey was conducted using optical mark recognition (OMR) sheets which were tabulated using computers

Besides Chandini Chowk, the referendum is being sought in nine other constituencies across the country.

While results from Amravati, Nagpur, Wardha and Mumbai are out, the process is currently on in two constituencies in Bangalore and will begin in Chennai from tomorrow.

Declaring the results, Kejriwal said of those who took part in the exercise in Amravati, 98% have supported the Jan Lokpal Bill. The figure was 81% in Nagpur and 95% in Wardha.

In Mumbai, of the sample size of around 1.5 lakhs, 95.04% people supported the civil society’s view on the Lokpal Bill.

Anna Hazare, who was also present during the press meet, said that the government should not shy away from social audit like the referendum.

On the issues of the government not willing to allow him to sit on fast at Jantar Mantar from August 16, Anna Hazare said that sitting in Jantar Mantar is not important, what is important in Lokpal.

However, he stressed that the government cannot deny him the democratic right to protest peacefully and if at all the government moves against him then he is ready to go to jail