governor HR Bhardwaj on Wednesday stated that he would give his approval if Justice N Santosh Hegde was reinstated as the head of the anti-corruption agency.
Insisting that there would be no compromise on the choice of the new Lokayukta, governor HR Bhardwaj on Wednesday stated that he would give his approval if Justice N Santosh Hegde was reinstated as the head of the anti-corruption agency.
In an apparent taunt, Bhardwaj said he is ready to give his approval in “one minute” if the government brings back Santosh Hegde as the state ombudsman.
He was speaking on the sidelines of the National Disaster Reduction Day and Rally at Kanteerava Stadium.
Reiterating his stand that the person selected for the post should have the stature and competence of Justice Hegde, the governor said that he would not appoint a wrong person. He wanted the state government to find a person who has spotless record.
“I have explained to the government through a detailed letter and I hope it gets into the head of the government. But I am not that (kind of) person who will appoint a wrong person,” he said.
Bhardwaj, who has rejected former Kerala chief justice SR Bannurmath’s name, said he needs to make the appointment after a lot of consideration as Lokayukta is a “very important institution” relating to probity and anti-corruption.
The governor recently wrote to the government suggesting a “rethink” in view of charges against Bannurmath and to select someone else. Bannurmath is facing charges of securing land allotment in a judicial layout violating rules.
The Lokayukta post has been lying vacant for two months after retired Supreme Court Judge V Shivaraj Patil resigned in September six weeks into office after allegations of land allotment by a housing cooperative society in violation of laws surfaced against him.
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