Lokpal: SC directs Centre to communicate date for meeting of Selection Committee

The Supreme Court today directed the Centre to inform the Court in ten days as to when the Selection Committee will meet for the selection of Lokpal members..Attorney General KK Venugopal told the Bench of Chief Justice of India Ranjan Gogoi and Justices S Abdul Nazeer and Sanjiv Khanna that three panels of names have been sent to the Selection Committee in conformity with the Court’s last order..Ten shortlisted names for Chairperson of Lokpal as well as names for judicial and non-judicial posts have been given to the Selection Committee, the Attorney General submitted..Advocate Prashant Bhushan, appearing for the petitioner organisation Common Cause, submitted before the Court that the process of selection should be made transparent. To this end, he suggested that the shortlisted names be uploaded on the website. This request, however, was rejected by the Court..The Centre is now required to communicate to the Court as to when the Selection Committee will hold the meeting for the selection of the Chairperson and members of the Lokpal..On the last date of hearing in January, the Supreme Court had laid down a time frame for shortlisting candidates who are to be considered for appointment to the post of Lokpal..The Court directed the Search Committee to finish its deliberations and submit the names of shortlisted candidates by the end of February..As per Section 4 of the Lokpal and Lokayuktas Act, 2013, the Selection Committee – chaired by the Prime Minister and also comprising the Speaker of the Lok Sabha, the Leader of the Opposition, the Chief Justice of India, and an eminent jurist – is tasked with appointing the Chairperson and members of the Lokpal..For this purpose, the Selection Committee shall constitute a Search Committee consisting of at least seven persons of standing and having special knowledge and expertise in the matters relating to anti-corruption policy, public administration, vigilance, policy making, finance including insurance and banking, law and management, and others..Bar & Bench is available on WhatsApp. For real time updates on stories, Click here to subscribe to our WhatsApp.