No justification for pending appointment of Lokpal: SC
Hearing a petition filed by NGO Common Cause, the Supreme Court on Thursday said the Lokpal Bill is a "workable piece of legislation" and there is no justification to keep its implementation pending. Shanti Bhushan argued that while the Lokpal Bill was passed in 2013 and came into effect in 2014, Lokpal has not been appointed by the government deliberately.
The Supreme Court today said that the Lokpal bill is a "workable piece of legislation" and there is no justification to keep its implementation pending.The Supreme Court ruled that there was no justification to hold the Act in abeyance, and said there was no reason to delay the appointment of Lokpal.Prashant Bhushan-led NGO Common Cause had filed a petition in the Supreme Court on the pending appointment of Lokpal.Senior advocate Shanti Bhushan, appearing for NGO, argued that even though the Lokpal Bill was passed by Parliament in 2013 and came into effect in 2014, Lokpal has not been appointed by the government deliberately.Earlier, the Supreme Court had pulled up the Centre for not appointing the Lokpal expeditiously. NO LEADER OF OPPOSITIONAttorney General Mukul Rohatgi had told the Supreme Court that in the current scenario, Lokpal cannot be appointed as there was no clear Leader of Opposition.After the Narendra Modi government was elected to power in 2014, no party has the required 10 per cent of the House strength (545 seats) to qualify as the 'Leader of Opposition'. The Congress has 45 members in Lok Sabha.The law mandates that the Leader of Opposition is part of the selection process of Lokpal.The selection panel for Lokpal also comprises the Prime Minister, the Lok Sabha speaker, the Chief Justice of India (CJI) or a sitting Supreme Court judge nominated by the CJI, and an eminent jurist nominated by the President on the basis of recommendations made by the other members of the panel. ALSO READ: