New Delhi [India], September 12 (ANI): The Delhi High Court on Monday stayed the proceedings before Lokpal against Jharkhand Mukti Morcha Chief and Rajya Sabha MP Shibu Soren in a Disproportionate Assets (DA) case.

New Delhi Apr 20 PTI The Delhi High court on Wednesday sought the Centres stand on a petition concerning the disclosure of information about the selection committee meetings held for the selection of the Chairperson and members of the LokpalJustice Yashwant Varma granted time to the central government counsel to seek instructions and listed the petition by activist Anjali Bhardwaj for further consideration in MayThe petitioner has challenged a January order passed on her RTI application by the Central Information Commission CIC which upheld the decision of the First Appellate Authority FAA denying the supply of the minutes of the meetings of the selection committee constituted under the Lokpal and Lokayukta Act 2013 for the selection of the Chairperson and members of the LokpalThe Central Public Information Officer CPIO of the Department of Personnel and Training DoPT had refused to provide a copy of the minutes on the ground that the authorship of such documents by high-level dignitaries did not vest in the DoPT and that the same had been shared as secret documentsThe petitioner represented by lawyer Prashant Bhushan has contended that withholding information related to the selection of the Lokpal chairperson and members is against the letter and spirit of the Lokpal Act and the RTI Act as the purpose of the ombudsman legislation is to enhance accountability in the functioning of public offices and to effectively contain and punish acts of corruptionThe petitioner has submitted that the access to information can be rejected only on the grounds mentioned in the RTI Act and there is no basis to deny the information sought merely because the authorship vests in high-level dignitaries and not in the public authority or because some document is shared as secretThe petition has further said that transparency in appointment to such oversight bodies is a crucial safeguard against arbitrariness and ensures their independent functioningThe impugned order negates the peoples fundamental right to information regarding the functioning of the State and all its instrumentalities as has been recognized as part of Article 19 I a of the Constitution of India Transparency is the most important value for the functioning of a healthy democracy the petition claimedIt added that the denial of information in the present case is in complete violation of the RTI Act and the principles of transparency in the selection process PTI ADS RKS RKS

New Delhi Mar 31 PTI The CBI has registered its first case on the basis of directives from the countrys anti-corruption watchdog Lokpal against Manager Singh the then director general of the National Research Laboratory for Conservation of Cultural Property NRLCCP officials said on Thursday The central probe agency registered the case on the basis of the Lokpals orders issued on September 30 2021 on complaints against Singh received by the watchdogThis is the first FIR registered by the agency referred by the Lokpal a senior official said on the condition of anonymity The Lokpal had directed the agency to conduct investigation in relation to and in connection with the matter of tendering awarding and execution of the work to V K Singh Construction Company by Manager Singh the then DG on contract in both the campuses of National Research Laboratory for Conservation of Cultural Property NRLC at Lucknow and MysoreIt has further been ordered to investigate into the payments made by V K Singh Construction Company to the relatives of Manager Singh DG on contract and in the related irregularities the FIR saidThe Central Bureau of Investigation CBI has booked Manager Singh VK Singh the company -- VK Singh Construction Company -- and unidentified public servants and private persons under the Indian Penal Code sections related to criminal conspiracy and cheating and the provisions of the Prevention of Corruption ActRetired Justice Pinaki Chandra Ghose was appointed as the first Lokpal of the country in 2019The Lokpal and Lokayukta Act which envisages the appointment of a Lokpal at the Centre and Lokayuktas in the states to look into cases of corruption against certain categories of public servants was passed in 2013According to the law the Lokpal has the power of superintendence and direction over any central investigation agency including the CBI for cases referred to these agencies by it PTI ABS RC

Chandigarh (Punjab) [India], March 25 (ANI): The Punjab government on Friday carried out a reshuffle of senior IPS officers appointing ADGP Gurpreet Kaur Deo as the Chief Vigilance Officer in place of Ishwar Singh.

Thiruvananthapuram Jan 29 PTI The political row over the Kerala governments decision to amend the Lok Ayukta Act refused to die down as the opposition Congress sought CPIM general secretary Sitaram Yechurys intervention in the matter while the BJP alleged that the ingenuity of the anti-corruption stand of the left party has been exposed through the move Satheesan who recently requested Governor Arif Mohammed Khan not to give assent to the proposed ordinance amending the decades-old law wrote to Yechury alleging that the objective of the Vijayan government was to undermine the Lok Ayukta in the state Senior BJP leader and Union Minister V Muraleedharan told reporters here that the Marxist party used to put up stiff resistance against bringing out ordinance by the Centre and their move to amend the Lok Ayukta Act without taking into confidence the state Assembly was in stark contrast to their proclaimed stand in this connection In his letter the Leader of Opposition in the Kerala assembly urged Yechury to recall his own arguments in Rajya Sabha in 2011 and 2013 stressing the need to make the Lok Pal autonomous transparent comprehensive and independent of political control Unfortunately the proposed ordinance to amend the Kerala Lokayukta Act 1999 is in stark contradiction to the progressive stance taken by your party and your good self on strengthening Lok Pal Lok Ayukta to combat corruption Satheesan said Alleging that the ordinance puts the political morality of the CPI M at stake and would reduce the party to mere political rhetoric to eyewash the common public he also said the existing Act enacted during the erstwhile communist government led by EK Nayanar had stringent provisions to combat corruption This amendment literally removes the Lok Ayuktas tooth and nail Its perplexing how an executive could serve as an appeal authority for a decision made by a former Supreme Court judge or Chief Justice of the High Court he said Charging that the hastiness in bringing this ordinance was suspicious the Congress leader said there seemed to be no other reason except that the Lok Ayukta is about to take up cases against the Chief Minister and the Higher Education Minister It is vividly clear that this amendment is a shield to guard against any unfavourable decisions from the Lok Ayukta Satheesan claimed Pointing out that the Lok Ayutka was the only tool left to question executive corruption and nepotism and rendering the Lok Ayukta toothless would only serve as a catalyst for corrupt public servants to engage in widespread corruption he also wanted Yechury to ensure that the state government refrains from moving forward with this extremely regressive legislationMeanwhile Muraleedharan took a dig at the Left party saying its leaders during the time of agitation for Lokpal had seemed like those having intolerance towards corruptionThey are showing their true colours now If the Centre brings out an ordinance it is undemocratic for them If they themselves bring a similar one in the state they will say it is a democratic approach the union minister added PTI LGK ROH ROH