The Hindu : Lokayuktas urge Centre to adopt Lokpal Bill

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Saturday, Jan 18, 2003

Southern States

Southern States - Karnataka

Lokayuktas urge Centre to adopt Lokpal Bill

By Our Special Correspondent

Bangalore Jan. 17. The Lokayuktas of two States, Justice N. Venkatachala (Karnataka) and Justice Milap Chand Jain (Rajasthan), have urged the NDA Government at the Centre to adopt the star-crossed Lokpal Bill, which was first introduced in Parliament in 1968, but has still not been adopted.

They were speaking at the inaugural session of the two-day Seventh All-India Lokayuktas/Lokpals/Upa-Lokayuktas Conference here today.

Mr. Justice Venkatachala said that though the Prime Minister, A.B. Vajpayee, had told the recent conference of governors that India could be a developed country by 2020 if there were no financial constraints, this would prove impossible if drastic and unpleasant steps were not taken to stop the siphoning off of funds by public functionaries. The former Supreme Court judge (1993-96) said the country's public functionaries had let down the poor and the helpless. The institution of Lokpal at the Central level and Lokayuktas in the States should be created. Impartial judges with concern for the poor should be appointed to them.

Mr. Justice Venkatachala noted that the Prime Minister had told the previous conference held two years ago that corruption was the biggest hurdle in the path of the country's development and the common people were the victims. The fact that the NDA Government had not adopted the Lokpal Bill had given rise to the suspicion that vested interests were sabotaging it as they had done in the case of the earlier seven Bills.

Mr. Justice Jain noted that it was the Administrative Reforms Commission headed by the former Prime Minister Morarji Desai which recommended in 1966 the setting up of a Lokpal at the Centre and Lokayuktas in the States to redress public grievances.

The Lokpal Bills were introduced in 1968, 1971, 1977, 1985, 1989, 1996, 1998, and 2001. It had been referred three times to joint select committees of both the Houses and as many times to the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Home Affairs. Five of those committees had submitted reports.

The Bill introduced in 2001 was under consideration after being gone into the by the department-related committee, which submitted its report on February 26, 2002, Mr. Justice Jain added.

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