Nainital, May 13 (PTI): The Uttarakhand High Court expressed strong displeasure on Wednesday over the state government’s failure to convene a search committee meeting for the appointment of a Lokayukta.
A division bench comprising Chief Justice Manoj Kumar Gupta and Justice Subhash Upadhyay directed the government to submit a response within 24 hours. The court asked why previous orders regarding the appointment remained unfulfilled.
The bench warned that the secretary concerned must appear personally before the court at 11 am on May 15 if the government fails to file its reply.
The directions came during the hearing of a public interest litigation (PIL) filed in 2021. The petitioner sought the immediate filling of the vacant post to ensure an impartial investigative mechanism.
The state government again requested additional time during the proceedings. The bench noted that the government had previously sought six months to complete the process, but the court had granted only three months.
The bench had previously asked for an affidavit detailing decisions from a search committee meeting scheduled for April 3.
The government informed the court that the April 3 meeting could not take place due to an incomplete quorum. The court had subsequently adjourned the matter for four weeks before this hearing.
The PIL states that the state spends Rs 2-3 crore annually on the Lokayukta institution despite the post remaining vacant. It claimed that several scams have surfaced in the state recently.
The petitioner argued that existing investigative agencies in Uttarakhand function under government control. No independent body currently exists to register corruption cases against gazetted officers without prior government sanction. PTI COR AKY AKY MNK MNK
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