Lokpal Bill (Govt. version):
1. The Lokpal will have jurisdiction only over the Prime Minister, ministers and MPs
2. The Lokpal will not have suo motu power to initiate inquiry or even receive complaints of corruption directly from the public. The complaints will be forwarded to it by the presiding officer of either House of Parliament
3. It is purely an advisory body and can therefore only give recommendations of the Prime Minister on complaints against ministers and to the presiding officer of either House on complaints against the Prime Minister and MPs
4. Since it has no police powers, the Lokpal cannot register an FIR on any complaint. It can only conduct a preliminary enquiry
5. Anybody found to have lodged a false complaint will be punished summarily by the Lokpal with imprisonment ranging from one year to three years
6. The Lokpal will consist of three members, all of them will be retired judges
7. The committee to select Lokpal members will consist entirely of political dignitaries and its composition is loaded in favour of the ruling party
8. If a complaint against the Prime Minister relates to subjects like security, defence and foreign affairs, the Lokpal is barred from probing those allegations
9. Though a time limit of six months to one year has been prescribed for the Lokpal to conduct its probe, there is no limit for completion of trial, if any
10. Nothing has been provided in law to recover ill-gotten wealth. After serving his sentence, a corrupt person can come out of jail and use that money.
Jan Lokpal Bill (Civil society version):
1. The Lokpal will have jurisdiction over politicians, bureaucrats and judges. The CVC and the entire vigilance machinery of the Centre will be merged into the Lokpal
2. The Lokpal cannot only initiate action on its own, but it can also entertain complaints directly from the public. It will not need reference or permission from any authority
3. After completing its investigation against public servants, the Lokpal can initiate prosecution, order disciplinary proceedings or both
4. With the corruption branch of the CBI merged into it, the Lokpal will be able to register FIRs, conduct investigations under the Criminal Procedure Code and launch prosecution
5. The Lokayukta can only impose financial penalties for complaints found to be false
6. The Lokpal will consist of 10 members and one chairperson, out of which only four are required to have legal background without necessarily having any judicial experience
7. The selection committee will be broad-based as it includes members from judicial background, Chief Election Commissioner, Comptroller and Auditor General, retired Army Generals and outgoing members of the Lokpal
8. There is no such bar on the Lokpal’s powers
9. The Lokpal will have to complete its investigation within one year and the subsequent trail will have to over in another year
10. Loss caused to government due to corruption will be recovered from all those proved guilty. (Source: The Times of India, dated 8-4-2011)
