The former Supreme Court judge K.T. Thomas has called for bringing the Prime Minister and the judiciary under the purview of the Lokpal Bill.
He was speaking at a function organised by the Kerala Congress (Anti-merger Group), led by P.C. Thomas, here on Monday as part of a P.T. Thomas commemoration and anti-corruption observance of the party.
Mr. Thomas said that inclusion of the Prime Minister's Office under the ambit of the Bill would not disturb the constitutional set-up, but would instead ensure greater accountability.
“Article 14 of the Constitution clearly specifies that no person can be denied equality before the law or the equal protection of the laws within the territory of India. This will imply that every citizen of the country should be placed on a single pedestal before the law that ensures equality in his or her rights. The present draft of the Bill that has been cleared does not incorporate this aspect,” he said.
He said the fact that former Karnataka Chief Minister B.S. Yeddyurappa was forced to resign in the wake of a Lokayukta report on illegal mining pointed towards the potential of the institution of the Lokpal to prevent corruption and ensure transparency.
He said greater efforts were needed at the earliest to eradicate the wide incidence of corruption in the country.
“According to a global report conducted by Transparency International that ranks countries according to their effectiveness in controlling corruption, India's position has worsened from 67 in the year 2006 to 97 in the year 2010,” he said.
Mr. P.C. Thomas presided over the function. Party working chairmen V. Surendran Pillai and Scaria Thomas and Communist Party of India (Marxist) district unit secretary K.J Thomas spoke.
