Cabinet clears OoP Bill, ignores Prez

The PM is scheduled to meet Kalam to explain the reasons for not considering his objections. Express your opinion

Ending a two-month suspense, the Union Cabinet on Saturday rejected President APJ Abdul Kalam's suggestion for reconsideration of the controversial Office of Profit Bill and decided to re-introduce it in Parliament in the same form next week.

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Simultaneously, the government would make fresh efforts to reach a consensus by holding talks with the Opposition on the measure.

A Cabinet meeting chaired by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh decided to bring a motion in response to President Kalam's message appealing to Parliament to reconsider the Bill.

It had been passed in the Budget session in the wake of a political row over the office of profit issue which had led to the resignation of UPA chairperson Sonia Gandhi from the Lok Sabha.

The Bill will first come before the Rajya Sabha on July 25, some two months after Parliament approved it on May 17 and returned by the President on May 30 with several suggestions.

There was an intense hour-long debate in the Cabinet over the measure, with some suggesting it should not give an impression that the government was on a confrontationist path with the President.

Sources said there was another view that a motion on the President's message should be placed along with the Bill.