Notify time for appointing Lokayukta: Niranjan
Bhubaneswar, July 04: Odisha govt. must notify the exact time period regarding appointment of Lokayukta, demands Mr. Niranjan Patnaik, Odisha PCC President.
He has reminded that demanding appointment of a competent Lokpal and Lokayukta in centre and state level respectively, noted social activist Mr. Anna Hazare started indefinite hunger strike in Ramlila Maidan, New Delhi on March 25 this year. This matter also came to the Supreme Court for hearing. A bench consisting of Justice Ranjan Gogoi and Justice R. Banumathi asked the govt. to file an affidavit in the next 10 days, detailing the steps taken or to be talked for the appointment of Lokpal, the anti graft ombudsman. Also the apex court asked 10 states and Union territories to show cause why no Lokayukta was functional yet. Accordingly the chief secretaries of concerned states were asked to file affidavit. But in the case of Odisha, there was no clarity on whether the state had a Lokayukta. Accordingly, the bench directed its chief secretary to file an affidavit “as to whether the office of the Lokayuka/ Up-Lokayukta in the state is functional.” Accordingly the Chief Sec. filed the affidavit.
Mr. Patnaik has pointed out that, Odisha had been the first to announce a state act, after the UPA II’s Lokpal and Lokayuktas Act, 2013, it never appointed a Lokayukta. The Odisha Lokayukta Bill 2014 was passed in the Assembly in February 2014, it received the President’s nod on January 28, 2015, but not notified.
It assumes that “The old Odisha Lokpal and Lokayukta Act, 1995 thus stands, and has not been repealed. So first of all whether the old act is in place or the new one is going to be notified state govt. must clarify. The Act would bring the Chief Minister, ex-CMs, other ministers and public servants under the purview of a six-member anti-corruption body to be headed by either a sitting or former High Court judge.
Now as per the deadline of July 10, given by the apex court is going to expire in a week, Odisha govt. should clarify whether it has started process of appointing Lokayukta and if so, should announce the time frame to complete the process, demands PCC president Mr. Patnaik.
