LOK AYUKTA

Gujarat High Court upholds the appointment of Lokayukta
 The High Court of Gujarat, Ahmedabad dismisses the plea of the Gujarat Government and upholds the
appointment of state Lokayukt by the Governor.
 Gujarat Governor Kamla Beniwal appointed Justice Mehta as the Lokayukta in August 2011, after over seven
years of the position lying vacant.
 On the day of appointment itself, the state government moved the High Court against the appointment.
 The Government contended that the act of the Governor Kamla Beniwal was unconstitutional in selecting the
ombudsman because the state government was not consulted. In October, two High Court judges delivered a
split verdict, and the case was referred to a third judge, Justice VM Sahai, who delivers the latest verdict.
 In the latest verdict, the High Court mandates that “The Chief Minister acted under a false impression that he
could turn down the superiority and primacy of the opinion of the Chief Justice which was binding. The spiteful
and challenging action demonstrates the false sense of invincibility.“
 The Court also notes that -Chief Minister’s recent attempts to amend how the Lokayukta is chosen were
“depraved and truculent actions.”
 The last Lokayukta of Gujarat was S M Soni, who retired in 2003.
 BJP says that this verdict is a setback to federalism and will hurt Lokayukta as an institution.
 The Government decides to challenge the decision in the Supreme Court after consultations with legal experts.







Justice (retd) Chandrashekaraiah sworn in as Upa Lokayukta
in Karnataka
 Former Karnataka High Court Judge, Mr Justice Chandrashekaraiah, was sworn-in as the second Upa Lokayukta
by Karnataka Governor H R Bhardwaj. Mr Justice Chandrashekaraiah joins first Upa Lok Ayukta,Mr Justice S B
Majage. However, the Lokayukta in Karnataka, which has been highly successful as a anti-corruption watchdog,
does not have a head.