Shimla: Himachal government talks about zero tolerance on corruption, State Chief Minister Jairam Thakur has said many times that he will not tolerate corruption at any cost, but a vacant important post like Lokayukta in the state government raises many questions about this stance.
The post of Lokayukta in Himachal has been vacant since 2017. Surprisingly, for the last three years, the Government has not started any exercise for the post. The Jai Ram government has completed its two and a half year term. The government does not get tired of counting its achievements for development work, but the vacancy of such an important post shows the negligence of the State government.
It is also worth noting that the Opposition has also failed to raise this issue. Congress state president Kuldeep Rathore said that the Lokayukta was posted at the time of the former Congress government and in 2017 Justice L.S Panta retired. Rathore said that since then not filling this post is the government's own failure.
The Jai Ram government has implemented the new Lokayukta Act, but the Lokayukta has not yet been appointed yet. Under the ambit of the new Act, the Chief Minister, the Cabinet Minister, the MLA, the officials will also come, but when will it actually happen, no one knows this. If CM Jai Ram is to be believed then the Government is trying to fill this post as soon as possible.
The Himachal Pradesh Lokayukta Act 2014 was approved by the President on 30th of June 2015. For the first time in Himachal, the Lokayukta Act came in 1983. To empower the amendment of the Act, the then BJP government asked the President in 2011, but the approval was not given. In 2012, the Congress came to power in the state and brought the amended bill in the budget session 2013 which was brought back to the Winter Session Dharamshala after opposition done by the opposition parties, then in 2015, the Bill was passed with amendments in the Budget Session, which was approved by the President on 30 June 2015.
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It is important to note that in the former Virbhadra Government, Justice Lokeshwar Panta was the Lokayukta of the state, but after his retirement in February 2017, this post has been lying vacant. The Lokayukta has its own prosecution wing. Two members may also be appointed for cooperation with the Lokayukta.
A new Lokayukta will be appointed under the Lokayukta Act 2014 in the state. Presently, Secretary Registrar PSP is working. The Secretary is from the rank of IAS Registrar, District and Sessions Judge and is from the SP Police Cadre. Apart from this, a staff of about 36 employees is also deployed for the same. Under the new act, corruption cases from public servants to public representatives can be investigated, allegations of corruption on legislators and ministers can also be investigated.
So far, more than 200 complaints have been filed in Himachal Pradesh Lokayukta, which shows the importance of the Lokayukta in the state, but due to the complexities in the law and the negative attitude of the State governments, the post of Lokayukta has been lying vacant in the state for quite a long time.
