New Delhi, Dec 13 (IANS): The Congress core group met here to discuss the Lokpal bill ahead of a meeting of United Progressive Alliance (UPA) leaders Tuesday evening, party sources said.
The one-hour meeting at the parliament house office of Prime Minister Manmohan Singh at noon was attended by party president Sonia Gandhi and senior ministers and party leaders, the sources added.
The focus of the meeting was to finalise the stand on the Lokpal bill, as some of its clauses are opposed by the civil society led by Anna Hazare.
Unlike during the decision on foreign direct investment (FDI) in retail, which was opposed by two major UPA constituents - the Trinamool Congress and the DMK - the UPA wants to tread unitedly and cautiously on the Lokpal issue, the sources said.
The UPA meeting will be held at the 7, Race Course Road residence of Manmohan Singh at 7 p.m.
The civil society and the opposition parties are demanding the inclusion of the prime minister, the lower bureaucracy and the the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) under the purview of the Lokpal. However, the Congress, till now, has been suggesting the inclusion of prime minister with riders, and of the lower bureaucracy through a separate set-up attached to the Lokpal.
It wants only the anti-graft wing of the CBI under Lokpal.
However, the Congress would hear the views of the UPA constituents first and reach a consensus based on that.
The UPA opinion will be placed before the all-party meeting called by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh Wednesday, the sources said
The government will try for a consensus with the opposition also at Wednesday's meeting and incorporate the changes in the bill at the cabinet meeting, likely to be held after the return of Prime Minister Manmohan Singh from a three-day visit to Russia Dec 15-17, sources said.
The final bill is likely to be approved at a special cabinet meeting Dec 19 and introduced in parliament for consideration and passage the next day.
The cabinet will meet Tuesday 6 p.m., just before the UPA meeting, during which bills including the Food Security Bill and Judicial Accountability Bill are likely to be approved, the sources added.