Lokpal: Anna thanks Rahul Gandhi, Rahul Gandhi thanks Anna for his encouragement

Lokpal: Anna thanks Rahul Gandhi, Rahul Gandhi thanks Anna for his encouragement
New Delhi: With the Lokpal Bill slated to come up in Rajya Sabha on Tuesday, Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi replied back to Anna Hazare's letter and thanked him for his encouragement in the passage of Lokpal Bill.

In his letter he said that the government is trying its best to give country a strong Lokpal Bill. Here is the full content of the letter to Anna Hazare by Rahul Gandhi.

“Thank you for your letter dated 15 Dec, 2013. It gave me encouragement in the passage of Lokpal bill.

We are committed to provide the people with a strong and efficient Lokpal bill. I take this opportunity to appreciate your role in it and also we are very grateful for your support in this regard”.

Rahul Gandhi has taken charge of his government's efforts to pass the anti-corruption Lokpal Bill, which will be taken up in the Rajya Sabha today with support across the political spectrum barring the government's ally, Samajwadi Party. Gandhian activist Anna Hazare, who is on a fast in his village in Maharashtra to demand a Lokpal law, has given his blessing to the government's efforts with a letter to Rahul Gandhi.

Rahul Gandhi on Tuesday morning called two ministers - Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kamal Nath and minister in charge of the Prime Minister's office V Narayanasamy - to discuss strategy to push the Bill in Parliament. The Congress Vice President on Saturday appealed publicly to all parties, including allies, to support the Bill. He denied that his party's initiative was linked to its humiliating defeat in the Delhi elections. Arvind Kejriwal's Aam Aadmi Party or AAP made a stunning debut with its promise to fight corruption, decimating the Congress after three terms.

Anna Hazare has written to Rahul Gandhi thanking him for his support to the Bill. He has disagreed vehemently with Arvind Kejriwal, his one-time protege, who has said the Lokpal Bill lacks teeth. In an equally warm reply, Rahul Gandhi wrote to Anna that his party was trying to give the country a strong Lokpal and acknowledged the 76-year-old Gandhian's role in the proposed law.