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Split verdict in Gujarat Lokayukta appointment case
Monday October 10, 2011 11:05:52 PM,
IANS
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Ahmedabad/New Delhi: In a setback to the Narendra Modi government, a two-judge bench of
the Gujarat High Court Monday delivered a split verdict on the
government's plea questioning the appointment of R.A. Mehta as the
Lokayukta by Governor Kamla Beniwal.
While Justice Akil Kureshi upheld the appointment of Mehta,
Justice Sonia Gokani disagreed. The case will now go to a larger
bench of the high court.
Reacting to the judgment, Congress spokesperson Manish Tiwari in
New Delhi said that the "setback in the case should be a lesson
for the BJP".
However, Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) spokesperson Prakash
Javdekar said the "judgement was a tie".
"It is politically untenable," he
added.
The state government questioned the appointment of Mehta on the
grounds that the governor did not consult it on the matter.
Mehta was appointed Lokayukta Aug 26. For seven years prior to
that, the state did not have an ombudsman.
Justice Kureshi said that any advice by the council of ministers
in the case would have been unconstitutional.
The governor had reportedly consulted legal experts before
appointing Mehta. The opposition Congress party had been pleading
for the appointment of an ombudsman.
To protest Mehta's appointment, a delegation of the BJP, led by
leader L.K. Advani, submitted a memorandum to President Pratibha
Patil urging her to scrap the order.
Modi approached the high court petitioning against the
appointment. He had also written a letter to Prime Minister
Manmohan Singh against Mehta's appointment.
Reacting to the verdict, Javadekar said: "Politically this
decision is untenable. According to Article 163 of the
Constitution, the governor is bound by the advice of the council
of ministers."
"We are very sure that the decision of the governor was a
politically motivated attack on the federal structure. The
Congress is isolated on this issue as even its allies differ from
it on this matter," he claimed.
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