By IANS,
New Delhi : As parliament debated the Lokpal bill Saturday, opposition Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) used the opportunity to vent its anger on the appointment of Lokayukta in Gujarat “bypassing” the state government.
The issue was first raised in the Lok Sabha by Leader of Opposition Sushma Swaraj, who said the state government was bypassed by the governor.
“State government was totally bypassed in appointing the Lokayukta,” she said.
She said the governor earlier sat on the file for appointing Lokayukta for six years, and then bypassed the government in appointing one.
“People say why Lokayukta was not appointed in Gujarat,” Sushma Swaraj said. “Gujarat chief minister submitted the name to governor after getting it approved from the chief justice (Gujarat high court) and the leader of opposition. That file was not forwarded for six years. The same person was later taken in the Maharashtra SHRC (State Human Rights Commission), but was not made the Lokayukta of Gujarat”.
“Later, when the meeting was called, the leader of opposition did not come. And yesterday, bypassing the whole government, the governor appointed a Lokpal,” she said.
Gujarat Governor Kamla Beniwal Friday appointed retired judge R.A. Mehta as the state Lokayukta, a decision which was swiftly challenged by the state government in the Gujarat High Court.
In the Rajya Sabha, Arun Jaitley said the incident brought a “bad name” to the institution of Lokpal.
“In some states, elected government is totally bypassed… and Lokayukta is appointed,” he said.
He said that it was a matter of concern how a constitutional body can be misused to defeat the political opponent.
“It can lead to death of Lokpal institution before it is created,” he said.
However, Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee intervened and said he agreed that the Lokayukta should be appointed by the state legislature.
“Here I entirely agree with you that the Lokayukta will have to be appointed by state legislature,” he said.
Appointment of Lokayuktas under the Lokpal bill is one of the points of contention between the government and activists.