The Supreme Court (SC) of India has repeatedly hauled up the Narendra Modi-led Bharatiya Janata Party government for failing to appoint a Lokpal, despite the Lokpal and Lokayuktas Act being passed in 2013.
The Lokpal is to be a statutory body that is supposed to inquire into allegations of corruption against public officials.
The Centre had earlier argued that in the absence of a leader of Opposition (LoP) in Parliament, the selection committee could not be constituted. However, on April 27, 2018, the SC clarified that the Lokpal appointment process need not be stalled merely due to the absence of the LoP.
In September 2018, the Centre constituted an eight-member search committee led by the PM to recommend names for the positions of chairperson and members of the anti-corruption body.
After much feet-dragging and directions from the SC, the search committee finally appointed the Lokpal on March 19.
Here is a timeline of the instances when the SC rebuked the Centre and engaged in helicopter parenting to enforce a bill passed 6 years ago:
1. On July 24, 2018, The Hindu reported that the SC said the government’s stand on completing the appointment of a Lokpal was “wholly unsatisfactory.”
The Hindu reported that the Chief Justice of India directed that the competent authority should file a second affidavit with all the details of what it had done in the appointment process. The SC was reacting to a government affidavit that was supposed to specify the exact timeframe for the appointing a Lokpal. Instead, the Attorney General (AG) KK Venugopal said it was a “complicated” process.
The AG then asked the apex court to make it clear what “details” it wanted from the government in the second affidavit. Refusing the AG, the court responded saying it did not “feel the necessity” to guide the government on what it should or should not include in its affidavit.
2. The Telegraph reported on January 4, 2019 that the SC chided the Modi-led BJP government for delaying the appointment of Lokpal. In a strongly-worded rebuttal, Chief Justice Ranjan Gogoi interrupted the acting AG KK Venugopal as he was reading out the steps taken in September last year, to appoint members of the search committee for the anti-corruption agency. The Chief Justice had said, “That’s long back! Tell us what you are doing now. We may tell you, much time has lapsed,” adding, “ou have to bring on record the steps taken since September till date. So much time is being taken in this matter.”
3. The Print reported on January 17 that the SC had fixed a February-end deadline for the Lokpal search committee to recommend the panel of names for appointment of the first Lokpal. The report added that the SC had also directed the Centre to provide the search committee with the requisite infrastructure and manpower to help complete its work.
4. On March 7, the Asian Age reported that the SC had asked the AG to inform, within 10 days, the meeting dates for the selection committee which will appoint Lokpal members and the Chairperson.
Also read: Justice Pinaki Chandra Ghose Appointed India’s First Lokpal