New Delhi, May 17 - More autonomy to CBI and appointment and removal of the anti-corruption ombudsman remained some of the sticking points between the government and the opposition even after some rounds of confabulations on the contentious Lokpal Bill.

In a bid to arrive at a consensus on the Lokpal Bill, government had reached out to the Opposition leaders and held discussions on some of the issues on which they differed.

While the opposition is insisting that CBI be made autonomous and taken out of the ambit of the government, the latter is not willing to part with the agency, sources said.

Law Minister Salman Khurshid, HRD Minister Kapil Sibal and Parliamentary Affairs Minister Pawan Kumar Bansal have held discussions with the Leader of the Opposition in Rajya Sabha Arun Jaitley and CPI-M leader Sitaram Yechury on the issue.

The Lokpal Bill was passed by the Lok Sabha in the winter session but is pending in the Upper House. The union cabinet is likely to discuss it.

Though the government is not in agreement on making CBI autonomous, it has reportedly agreed with the opposition that the agency's Director should be appointed by a collegium to bring about transparency, said the sources.

The opposition has also demanded that the body which chooses the Lokpal should be neutral and have less government presence and control. The number of judges in this selection committee may be brought down.

On the issue of removal of Lokpal, the government is reportedly coming around to the opposition demand that the ruling dispensation should not have all the powers. A middle path where Parliament takes a call on the matter and then conveys it to the Supreme Court is being worked out.

As far as bringing NGOs within the ambit of Lokpal is concerned, the government may agree to the opposition's suggestion that only government-funded NGOs be under the ombudsman's purview.

The government and the opposition have agreed the Lokayukta clause should be dropped from the Bill and a separate model law can be passed which can serve as a guideline for the state to form their own anti-graft law.

Sources said the Lokpal Bill may come up in the Rajya Sabha on Tuesday, the last day of the current budget session of Parliament. PTI