Apex Court directs 10 state and 1 UT to accelerate appointment of Lokayukta

Governments of 10 states and 1 union territory to whom the Supreme Court had on March 23 asked direct questions regarding the delay in appointment of Lokayukta explained the advancement made in this direction by filing affidavits. While Meghalaya, Mizoram, Nagaland, Odisha, Manipur, Telangana and Arunachal Pradesh were asked by the court to accelerate the process when told by their counsels that the “ process was on” , Jammu and Kashmir said it was still considering the appointment. Moreover, Puducherry informed the Court that a law will be enacted. West Bengal and Tamil Nadu informed they were engaged in the process of reviewing the state Lokayukta Act for this purpose. While Tripura informed that a Lokayukta has been appointed. All the governments have been directed to file fresh status reports on July 10, the next date of hearing. On March 23, the court had asked advocate Gopal Shankaranarayanan who appeared for petitioner Ashwini Upadhyaya, lawyer and Delhi BJP leader, which are the states which have appointed Lokayukta and which states haven't? When he did not have a definite answer and said that he at present had no information, Justice Gogoi read out from a note he had prepared that West Bengal, Arunachal Pradesh, Jammu and Kashmir, Telangana, Nagaland, Manipur, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Puducherry, Tamil Nadu and Tripura had not appointed a Lokayukta or a Uplokayukta. The court then directed Chief Secretaries of these 10 states and 1 UT to file an affidavit in the court within 2 weeks as to what steps have been taken to make the appointment and also specify the reason for delay or non-appointment. The court was hearing a PIL seeking appointment of Lokpal and Lokayuktas at the Centre and in states as provided for in the central legislation passed in 2013. The PIL also demanded a Right to Service -a Citizen Charter in every department to ensure time-bound delivery of goods and services contending that it was an integral part of Article 21. It also seeks a direction to all the states to provide adequate budgetary allocation and essential infrastructure for effective functioning of Lokayuktas. Upadhyay alleged that though the Lokpal and Lokayuktas Act, 2013, received Presidential assent on January 1, 2014, and came into force from January 16, 2014, the executive has not established the Lokpal.