Maharashtra CM, cabinet to come under ‘Lokayukta’ as Shinde govt approves Anna Hazare’s demand

The Maharashtra government will implement the Lokpal Law in the state. The law would bring the prime minister under the jurisdiction of the Lokayukta.

It will consist of five members Lokayukta with the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court and the Justices of the Supreme Court.

By Ritvick Arun Bhalekar: The Maharashtra government will implement the Lokpal Law in the state, which puts the chief minister of the state under the jurisdiction of Lokayukta. The recommendations of a panel led by social activist Anna Hazare were fully accepted.

The Anna Hazare Committee’s recommendation to set up a Lokayukta similar to a Lokpal in Maharashtra was approved during a cabinet meeting in Nagpur before the General Assembly. “We will run the government with full transparency. We will make Maharashtra corruption-free, so we have decided to bring the Lokayukta Law into the state,” Maharashtra CM Eknath Shinde said while speaking to reporters.

“Anna Hazare called for the Lokpal Law in Maharashtra. During our tenure, we formed a committee headed by Anna Hazare to make recommendations. However, nothing was done about it during the reign of Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA). When we returned to power, we accelerated the process,” said Deputy Prime Minister of Maharashtra Davendra Fadnavis.

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The Lokayukta will consist of a five-person team that will include the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court and the Justices of the Supreme Court.

“We are making a new act by Lokpal to fight corruption and it is the biggest step our government has taken in the last five months,” the deputy CM said.

MAHARASHTRA-KARNATAKA BORDER SERIES

“The border issue between Maharashtra and Karnataka has not emerged recently. Villagers of Jat in Sangli district had passed a proposal to join Karnataka in 2013,” said Davendra Fadnavis.

“Moreover, many border districts demanding to join other bordering states like Gujarat and Andhra Pradesh are being provoked by certain political parties. We have gathered all the information related to this and will be announcing it soon,” added the state’s Deputy CM.

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WHAT IS LOKAYUKTA?

Lokayukta is a top statutory official charged with dealing with popular grievances against a state government and its administration.

Once the law is passed, the Governor will appoint the Lokayukta after appropriate consultation with the Chief Justice of the Bombay High Court and the Leader of the Opposition in the Maharashtra Legislative Assembly.

Maharashtra was the first state in the country to establish the Lokayukta through the Maharashtra Lokayukta and Upa-Lokayuktas Act of 1971.