Won't withdraw Govt bill, can amend it: Pranab

Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee has made it clear that the Government is not going to withdraw its Lokpal Bill, but was willing to amend it. Speaking to Karan Thapar on Devil's Advocate, Mukherjee said that it was not possible to satisfy both the Opposition and Anna Hazare.

"We are always trying to find a solution, even from his threat to agitation. If you recollect the chronology of the events, when he sat at hunger strike in Jantar Mantar in the month of April, government represented teams talked to him through his interlocutors and then we agreed to have the joint drafting committee," said Mukherjee.

He said that parliamentary process cannot be bypassed and the Bill will be have to follow it.

"This is a real serious problem which we are unable to convince the associates of Sri Anna Hazare, when we have had discussions, that Congress party doesn't have a clear absolute majority of its own. Secondly, legislation is to be passed by majority members of the Parliament. Even the recommendation which will come from the Standing Committee, there too it will have to be endorsed, all those recommendations by the majority members of the standing committee. Therefore, these are the absolute necessity to get a legislation passed. Therefore, we require the support and cooperation of all political parties," he said.

Appealing Hazare to end his fast which entered its 11th day on Friday, Mukherjee said that legislative processes take time.

"I am, we are trying our best to convince him, to persuade him that he should give up his fast, he should give us more time, because this is not for the first time I am saying, even during the discussions in the joint drafting committee, I mentioned it umpteen number of times that it will take time and as Congress party doesn't have majority of votes of it own, we shall have to carry others with us. Therefore, we can introduce the Bill in the Monsoon session but we cannot give you guarantee that the Bill will be passed by Parliament in the Monsoon session," he added.