Modi govt moves SC on lokayukta
In a swift move the Gujarat government on Thursday filed an appeal in the Supreme Court against state high court’s Wednesday verdict upholding the appointment of Justice R.A. Mehta as “lokayukta” of the state by governor Kamla Beniwal without consulting chief minister Narendra Modi and his council of ministers.
Describing the verdict as contrary to the basic principle of “federalism” laid down in the Constitution, the Modi government said that the it was basically “wrong” as it “suffocates the council of ministers” and allows the Governor to act independently and on her own “discretion”. This was not contemplated in Article 161 of the Constitution that deals with the powers of the governor, the petition said.
“The say of the council of ministers in a state cannot be allowed to be suffocated in this manner (by the governor). But the say of council of minister is given a total go by in the impugned judgement,” the Modi government said while seeking stay on Wednesday’s verdict as well as August 18, 2011 warrant of appointment issued to Justice Mehta by the governor Beniwal.
During the day, a battery of senior lawyers, led by Harish Salve were engaged in hectic activities in finalising the petition and even efforts were made to get the case listed by the registry in the “mentioning list” for urgent hearing in a bid to “control possible political damage” to the BJP government in the state due to any “adverse” publicity arising out of the verdict.
However, their efforts to get the matter listed for urgent mentioning could not succeed as the registry had pointed out certain technical mistakes and asked the to correct and by the time the court hours were over.
The Modi government accused the governor of acting in an “unprecedented haste” in issuing the warrant of appointment to Justice Mehta, whose name was opposed by the council of ministers and the CM. Certain speeches of Justice Mehta, his association with some NGOs, his “specified frame of mind” were cited by the CM as his “disqualification” for the post of Lokayukta and duly brought to the notice of the Chief Justice.
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