In process of picking state’s Lokayukta, one recommended for post: Govt to HC

The state government on Thursday told the Delhi high court that it is in the process of appointing a Lokayukta and has already recommended a name for the post.

The Delhi government’s standing counsel Santosh Tripathi informed a bench of high court chief justice DN Patel and justice Jyoti Singh that the recommendation was made at a meeting in this regard on February 10.

The submission was made in response to a PIL by lawyer and Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Ashwini Upadhyay, seeking direction to the city government to appoint a Lokayukta within a month, as promised by Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) in its election manifesto.

Noting the submission of the counsel for Delhi government, the court listed the matter for hearing on April 29.

Noting that the AAP came into existence after the historic anti-corruption movement, Upadhyay, in his plea, said the post has been lying vacant since December 2020, when justice Reva Khetrapal retired.

The plea alleged that the Delhi government is not taking steps to weed out “the menace of bribery, black money, benami property, tax evasion, profiteering and other economic as well as white-collar offences”, and asked the court to intervene in the appointment of a Lokayukta.

The petitioner sought to direct the Delhi government to appoint the Lokayukta within a month.