Harayana Assembly adopts Bill to appoint Lok Ayukta

CHANDIGARH, NOV 16: The Haryana Assembly today adopted a bill seeking to appoint a Lok Ayukta for inquiring into allegations and grievanc...

CHANDIGARH, NOV 16: The Haryana Assembly today adopted a bill seeking to appoint a Lok Ayukta for inquiring into allegations and grievances against public servants, amid a walkout by the entire Opposition.

The Opposition Congress and the Haryana Vikas Party staged a noisy walkout from the House, minutes before the Bill was passed, calling it a “black Bill”.

Earlier, participating in the debate on the Bill, they alleged that it had a lacunae and demanded that it be referred to a select committee.

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The bill replaces an ordinance issued by the Government, repealing the 1997 Lok Ayukta Act. Incidentally, in 1997 too, the Lok Ayukta Bill was also adopted by the House in the absence of the Opposition.

Replying to the debate on the Bill, Chief Minister Om Parkash Chautala said the Bill had been introduced with a view to removing various lacunae in the previous Bill. He said his Government consulted top constitutional experts before introducing the Bill in the House. He said the Bill was comprehensive and without any malice towards anyone.

He said the Lok Ayukta will look into complaints or grievances against public servants from November 1, 1966, onwards, when the State came into being.

The Bill aimed at rooting out corruption from public life and punishing those found corrupt. The State Government had constituted a committee under the chairmanship of a retired High Court judge to make recommendations for enacting a law for appointment and working of the Lok Ayukta in the State, he said.