A petition was filed before the Madurai Bench of the Madras High Court on Wednesday seeking a direction to declare the Tamil Nadu Lokayukta Act, 2018 as ultra vires the Constitution and Lokpal and Lokayuktas Act, 2013.
In his petition, K. Gurunathan of Tiruchi district said Lokpal for the Centre and Lokayuktas for the States were constituted as a mechanism to receive complaints regarding allegations of corruption made against public servants including ministers.
While Lokpal had jurisdiction to inquire into allegations of corruption against anyone who was or had been a Prime Minister and other Union Ministers, the Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu did not come within the purview of the Tamil Nadu Lokayukta Act.
The petitioner said that under the Central Act, there was a separate inquiry wing in order to conduct preliminary inquiry, but there was no such agency under the State Act. There was no provision to prosecute corrupt officials under the State Act.
The Lokayukta constituted under the Tamil Nadu Lokayukta Act was powerless and against the Constitution. It also went against the policy of ‘zero tolerance against corruption’, he said and sought a direction to declare the Tamil Nadu Lokayukta Act ultra vires the Constitution.
A Division Bench of Justices M. Duraiswamy and K. Murali Shankar sought a response from the State. The court ordered notice to the State and directed the government to file a counter affidavit to the petition. The case was adjourned by 12 weeks.
