The Congress government in Rajasthan has amended the Lokayukta Act to reduce the Lokayukta’s tenure from eight years to five years. The decision has led to an abrupt end of the term of the present Lokayukta, Justice Sajjan Singh Kothari, who has completed six years in office.
The previous BJP regime had extended Justice Kothari’s tenure by three years by amending the Rajasthan Lokayukta and Up-Lokayukta Act, 1973, through an Ordinance. The move came shortly before Justice Kothari’s five-year tenure was to end.
The notification reversing the BJP government’s decision was issued here on Thursday after Governor Kalyan Singh gave his assent to the new Ordinance. The Ordinance stated that the Lokayukta “shall be deemed to have demitted the office with effect from [its] commencement”.
Justice Kothari, a former Judge of the Rajasthan HC, was sworn in the Lokayukta on March 25, 2013, during the then Ashok Gehlot regime. He probed the Mathur Commission’s files related to the alleged corruption cases during Vasundhara Raje’s first tenure as the CM and recommended disciplinary action against 25 public servants.
