Lokayukta Appointed In Delhi, High Court Informed

The Delhi government on Thursday informed the Delhi High Court about the appointment of the Lokayukta in the national capital and said with this a plea seeking a direction with regard to the appointment of the ombudsman has become infructuous.

Noting the development, a bench of Chief Justice Satish Chandra Sharma and Justice Subramonium Prasad disposed of the petition.

The court was hearing a 2022 public interest litigation seeking a direction to the AAP government here to appoint a Lokayukta as promised by the party in its election manifesto of 2020.

At the outset, Delhi government standing counsel Santosh Kumar Tripathi informed the court that the Lokayukta was appointed in March last year and the petition has become infructuous now.

Petitioner lawyer Ashwini Kumar Upadhyay said it was unfortunate that the Lokayukta was appointed only after a petition was filed by him in court.

Retired Jharkhand High Court judge Justice Harish Chandra Mishra has been appointed as the Lokayukta in the national capital, the court was told.

In February last year, the Delhi Government had told the high court that the process of appointing a Lokayukta was underway and a name has been recommended for the appointment.

In his petition, Mr Upadhyay had sought the appointment of the Lokayukta within one month and stated that although the political party came into existence after the historic anti-corruption movement, the post of Lokayukta has been lying vacant since December 2020.

The petitioner alleged the Delhi government is not taking steps to weed out the menace of bribery, black money, benami property, tax evasion, profiteering, and other economic as well as white-collar offences and therefore, being the protector of fundamental rights, the court has to intervene in the matter of the appointment of a Lokayukta.

"When Justice Reva Khetrapal retired as Delhi Lokayukta, the government did nothing to fill the post till date and hundreds of complaints relating to corruption are pending in the office," the petition claimed.

"The AAP promised a stringent and effective Jan Lokpal Bill in 2015 and 2020 election manifesto but rather enacting the Law, it is not even appointing the Lokayukta under outdated ineffective 1995 Act and hundreds of serious complaints relating to corruption against MLAs are pending in Lokayukta Office," it submitted.

The petitioner sought a direction to the Delhi government to appoint the Lokayukta in the spirit of the promises made in the 2020 Election Manifesto within one month.

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