While Justice B.V. Nagarathna held the provision to be arbitrary, Justice K.V. Viswanathan ruled that it is constitutionally valid, subject to the condition that instead of the Central or the State government, the prior sanction to proceed against a public servant would depend on the recommendation of the Lokpal or the Lokayukta (in the case of States).
The government’s recent tender order to procure seven luxury vehicles for the Lokpal has ignited a storm of criticism and public outrage, raising serious questions about the anti-corruption body’s priorities.
The anti-corruption watchdog is watching… from a BMW. It has come to light that the Lokpal is planning to buy seven luxury sedans worth Rs 70 lakh each, one for every member.
The Lokpal has given the CBI six months time to complete the probe.
Justice Lingappa Narayana Swamy, Justice Sanjay Yadav, and Justice Ritu Raj Awasthi were named judicial members of Lokpal through a Rashtrapati Bhavan communique issued this evening.
Justice Subramonium Prasad had, on January 22, refused to intervene in the proceedings deeming Soren's petition challenging the Lokpal proceedings and the complaint as premature.
However, there has been no official confirmation of the claim from the anti-corruption body.
In contrast, on the appointment of Lokpal, the committee has recommended the setup panel to shortlist the names for the post of Lokpal.
President of India, Ram Nath Kovind on Thursday appointed Justice Pradip Kumar Mohanty as Acting Chairperson, Lokpal.
The Government would do well to devise a mechanism to avoid the outpouring of public anger of the kind being witnessed now. The public resents being taken for granted; even beneficial steps have to be taken after discussion. The first step by the Government could, therefore, be to shed its propensity to act in haste, without consulting stakeholders.
