Why Karnataka politicians dread an all-powerful Lokayukta | Bengaluru News
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BENGALURU: Why have successive governments refrained from strengthening the Karnataka Lokayuktawhich was touted to be the best in the country? Though it is common knowledge that politicians and bureaucrats fear their transgressions will get exposed, there is more to it.
Senior ministers, former and current, say they were worried about their political opponents using the institution just to defame them in public by filing corruption cases against them, often grabbing newspaper headlines. Also, they claim some used it to threaten, blackmail and extort money from them.
This apprehension was more palpable during the first BJP government headed by BS Yediyurappa, followed by the Congress dispensation headed by Siddaramaiah.
Though Yediyurappa resigned after then Lokayukta Santosh Hedge submitted his report on the mining scam that directly implicated him, about 13 FIRs were filed against him during the Congress rule. The former CM is still battling about half a dozen cases. Besides, 13 ministers in his cabinet were probed by Lokayukta, mainly in connection with cases pertaining to denotification of land in violation of government rules.
During the Congress rule between 2013 and 2016, Siddaramaiah had a tough time after a social activist approached the Lokayukta special court with a complaint over a Hublot watch gifted to the CM (Siddaramaiah), supposedly by one of his friends, after HD Kumaraswamy raised this issue. He faced huge embarrassment until he handed it over to the assembly speaker declaring it a state asset.
In 2019, an RTI application filed with the Lokayukta by Wing Commander (retd) GB Athri revealed that about 50 cases pending against Siddaramaiah with the Lokayukta were filed between April 1, 2015 and March 31, 2018.
More cases were filed after Siddaramaiah turned the Lokayukta into a paper tiger and introduced the Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB), which meant the Lokayukta could not book cases under the Prevention of Corruption Act on its own or conduct raids. Moreover, the ACB was under the chief minister’s office.
The Lokayukta has also given sleepless nights to government employees, especially cops, RTO officers, civic officials and sub-registrars, many of whom were booked for amassing wealth disproportionate to their income, while hundreds were caught accepting bribes.
According to senior advocate Sharath K, the Act was drafted by the Janata Party government led by Ramakrishna Hegde in such a way that powers could not be abused and the Lokayukta had complete autonomy, even to probe the CM. However, over the years, successive governments diluted these powers, and the Siddaramaiah government delivered a final nail in its coffin.
Senior ministers, former and current, say they were worried about their political opponents using the institution just to defame them in public by filing corruption cases against them, often grabbing newspaper headlines. Also, they claim some used it to threaten, blackmail and extort money from them.
This apprehension was more palpable during the first BJP government headed by BS Yediyurappa, followed by the Congress dispensation headed by Siddaramaiah.
Though Yediyurappa resigned after then Lokayukta Santosh Hedge submitted his report on the mining scam that directly implicated him, about 13 FIRs were filed against him during the Congress rule. The former CM is still battling about half a dozen cases. Besides, 13 ministers in his cabinet were probed by Lokayukta, mainly in connection with cases pertaining to denotification of land in violation of government rules.
During the Congress rule between 2013 and 2016, Siddaramaiah had a tough time after a social activist approached the Lokayukta special court with a complaint over a Hublot watch gifted to the CM (Siddaramaiah), supposedly by one of his friends, after HD Kumaraswamy raised this issue. He faced huge embarrassment until he handed it over to the assembly speaker declaring it a state asset.
In 2019, an RTI application filed with the Lokayukta by Wing Commander (retd) GB Athri revealed that about 50 cases pending against Siddaramaiah with the Lokayukta were filed between April 1, 2015 and March 31, 2018.
More cases were filed after Siddaramaiah turned the Lokayukta into a paper tiger and introduced the Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB), which meant the Lokayukta could not book cases under the Prevention of Corruption Act on its own or conduct raids. Moreover, the ACB was under the chief minister’s office.
The Lokayukta has also given sleepless nights to government employees, especially cops, RTO officers, civic officials and sub-registrars, many of whom were booked for amassing wealth disproportionate to their income, while hundreds were caught accepting bribes.
According to senior advocate Sharath K, the Act was drafted by the Janata Party government led by Ramakrishna Hegde in such a way that powers could not be abused and the Lokayukta had complete autonomy, even to probe the CM. However, over the years, successive governments diluted these powers, and the Siddaramaiah government delivered a final nail in its coffin.
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