Lokayukta

What is ‘Lokayukta’

The Lokayukta is the anti-corruption authority or the ombudsman institution conceived in the Indian states to investigate complaints of corruption, maladministration, or abuse of power against public officials, including elected representatives, government employees, and ministers. The Lokayukta is an independent statutory body, which in most cases, usually is established under the respective state's Lokayukta Act.

Official Definition of ‘Lokayukta’

The Lokayukta is an anti-corruption authority or ombudsman established at the state level in India. Its primary function is to investigate allegations of corruption, maladministration, and abuse of power by public officials, including ministers, legislators, and other public servants. The institution aims to promote transparency and accountability within the state's administration.

According to the Sec 63 of The Lokpal and the Lokayukta Act,2013 Every State shall constitute a body to be known as the Lokayukta for the State, if not so established, constituted or appointed, by a law made by the State Legislature, to deal with complaints about corruption against some public officials, within a period of one year from the date of commencement of this Act.

In state legislations like the THE UTTAR PRADESH LOKAYUKTA AND UP-LOKAYUKTA ACT-1975and The Madhya Pradesh Act of 1981"Lokayukta" means a person appointed as the Lokayukta and "Up-Lokayukta" means a person appointed as an Up-Lokayukta under section 2 of both the Acts.

UP-LOKAYUKTA

An Up-Lokayukta is a deputy to the Lokayukta, who assists in investigating and addressing corruption complaints against public officials in a state. The Up-Lokayukta functions under the Lokayukta Act of the respective state and is typically empowered to handle cases assigned by the Lokayukta or deal with specific categories of complaints.Generally every state has its own Up-Lokayukta but some states still don't have their Up-Lokayukta established some of them are Bihar, Haryana ,Gujarat etc.

Appointment Of ‘Lokayukta’

Generally in most states, The Lokayukta is appointed by the Governor of that particular state after

1. Consultation with the Chief Justice of the High Court

2. Leader of Opposition of the Legislative Assembly in case if there is no leader of opposition the members of the Opposition will choose someone for consultation, as directed by the Speaker.

3. The Up-Lokayukta is appointed after consulting the Governor.

The Lokayukta and Upa-Lokayuktas must take an oath or affirmation in the format given in the First Schedule. This will be done in front of the Governor or someone authorized by the Governor.

The Upa-Lokayuktas will work under the administrative supervision of the Lokayukta. To ensure investigations are handled efficiently, the Lokayukta can give general or specific instructions to the Upa-Lokayuktas.

However, the Lokayukta cannot interfere with the findings, conclusions, or recommendations made by an Upa-Lokayukta.

Except in Bihar and Arunachal Pradesh under The Bihar Lokayukta Act, 2011 and Arunachal Pradesh Lokayukta act 2014 The Lokayukta is appointed by the Selection Committee appointed by the Governor.

Historical Development

In the Indian landscape, the concept and words Lokpal and Lokayukta were coined by Dr. LM Singhvi. During the initial years of 1960s, Ashok Kumar Sen who was the Law Minister at that time proposed the idea of a constitutional version in the Parliament of India. He envisioned it as a constitutional ombudsman to tackle the problem of growing occlusion and corruption in Indian bureaucracy and governance.

Later, in 1966, as part of the first Administrative Reforms Commission recommendation, it was conceived that there should be two authorities that ought to be independent at the Central and state levels. One of which would investigate the Complaints against the corruption cases of government officials.

The Lok Sabha was dissolved in 1968, and the Lokpal bill lapsed from then onwards. Since then, it has been falling through many Lok Sabha sessions. The bill was passed 8 times before 2011 but failed every time. It was recommended by the commission to revisit the working of the Indian constitution established by MN Venkatachaliah in 2002 that the Lokpal and Lokayukta be appointed and the PM should remain outside the authority's scope.

Veerappa Mauli led the second Administrative Reforms Commission, which recommended that the Lokpal office be established immediately. The Lokpal bill proposal was analyzed by the ministerial groups, and the report that Pranab Mukherjee published in 2011 resulted from this process.

It was Anna Hazare's India against corruption movement that further advanced to the Lokpal and Lokayukta bill in 2013, sanctioned by Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha under the UPA government. The Lokpal and Lokayukta bill received their assent from the President of India on 1st January 2014 and later came into action on 16th January 2014.

No Lokayuktas in Jammu and Kashmir as well as Puducherry exist. For Tamil Nadu, a Lokayukta Act became a reality on 13 July 2018with an establishment that happened on 13 November 2018. A Lokayukta bill was passed by the Arunachal Pradesh Assembly on 4 March 2014. In March 2019, the Mizoram Assembly also enacted a Lokayukta Bill.

Function of ‘Lokayukta’

The Lokayukta is an independent body that addresses complaints of corruption or misconduct by government officials. It promotes transparency, protects honest officials, and ensures good governance.

It investigates complaints, either on its own or through formal submissions, using agencies like ACB or Vigilance. If allegations are proven, it recommends disciplinary actions. The Lokayukta works to prevent abuse of power and strengthen accountability in governance.

Eligibility For Being a ‘Lokayukta’ and ‘Up-Lokayukta’

In Most of the Indian States, A Lokayukta or Upa-Lokayukta cannot:

• Be a member of Parliament or a State Legislature.
• Hold any position of trust or profit (other than their role as Lokayukta or Upa-Lokayukta).
• Be associated with any political party.
• Be involved in running or managing any business.
• Be practicing any profession.

Before taking office, the person must:

• Resign from Parliament or State Legislature if they are a member.
• Resign from any office of trust or profit they hold.
• Cut ties with any political party they are associated with.
• Step away from running or managing any business (though ownership is allowed).
• Suspend the practice of any profession.

If the person is a sitting Judge he must resign from his office for being appointed as a lokayukta.

Term Of Office of ‘Lokayukta’

Generally, In most Indian states, the term of the Lokayukta is 5 years. However, there is an exception in Uttar Pradesh Lokayukta and Uplokayukta act,1975 , where the Lokayukta serves for a longer term of 8 years. This difference is based on the rules made by individual states.

Removal Of ‘Lokayukta’

The Procedure of Removal of the Lokayukta for all the states is the same. Subject to the provisions of Article 311 of the Constitution, the Lokayukta or an Upa-Lokayukta may only be removed from office by the Governor on grounds of misbehavior or incapacity and on no other grounds.

Provided that:

(a) For the Lokayukta, the required inquiry under clause (2) of Article 311 shall be conducted by a person appointed by the Governor, who is or has been a Judge of the Supreme Court or a Chief Justice of a High Court.

(b) For the Upa-Lokayukta, the inquiry shall be conducted by a person appointed by the Governor, who is or has been a Judge of the Supreme Court or a Judge of a High Court.

(2) The person conducting the inquiry shall submit their report to the Governor, who shall ensure it is laid before each House of the State Legislature as soon as possible.

(3) The Governor shall not remove the Lokayukta or Upa-Lokayukta unless an address for such removal is presented by each House of the State Legislature, supported by:

(a) A majority of the total membership of that House, and

(b) A majority of not less than two-thirds of the members present and voting, in the same session.

Complaint and Procedure

“Complaint” means a complaint by any person alleging or making allegations that a public functionary has committed acts of corruption or any other act.

Every complaint must be submitted as a statement, supported by an affidavit, and in the format and manner prescribed. Before starting an investigation, the Lokayukta or Upa-Lokayukta may conduct a preliminary inquiry if they consider it necessary.

The Preliminary Inquiry should be completed within a period not extending more than 60 days for most of the states except Mizoram under the Mizoram Lokayukta Act 2014 the inquiry should be completed within 45 days

Incase of Himachal Pradesh the period of Inquiry under the Himachal Pradesh Lokayukta Act 2014 the preliminary inquiry shall be completed within 90 days.

The Procedure for the investigation of the Lokayukta is the same for all the states

Before starting an investigation, the Lokayukta or Upa-Lokayukta:

• Sends a copy of the complaint to the public servant and the concerned authority.
• Gives the public servant a chance to respond.
• May secure documents relevant to the investigation.

Investigations are conducted privately, and the identities of the complainant and public servant are kept confidential. However, if the case involves public importance, the investigation may be conducted publicly with written justification.

The Lokayukta/Upa-Lokayukta can decide the procedure for the investigation based on the situation.

The Lokayukta/Upa-Lokayukta can refuse or stop an investigation if:

• The complaint is frivolous, malicious, or lacks good faith.
• There are insufficient grounds for the investigation.
• The complainant has other remedies available, and it is better to pursue those.

If an investigation is not entertained or is discontinued, the reasons must be recorded and communicated to both the complainant and the public servant.

An investigation does not stop the public servant from continuing their duties or taking necessary actions related to the matter.

Matters that can be investigated by the ‘Lokayukta’ and ‘Uplokayukta’

The Lokayukta can investigate complaints against Ministers, Secretaries, and public servants or even start an investigation without a formal complaint if misconduct is suspected.

The Upa-Lokayukta handles complaints against public servants, excluding Ministers and Secretaries, and can also begin investigations if potential grievances are identified.

The Lokayukta can take over any case under the Upa-Lokayukta's jurisdiction with written justification. In states with multiple Upa-Lokayuktas, the Lokayukta can assign cases to them. If a case isn’t formally assigned, actions taken by the Upa-Lokayukta remain valid, ensuring smooth investigations.

Lokayukta in databases

In this section, we present key information from the Annual Reports of the State Lokayukta, taken from official records. These documents are being shared to support the ongoing process and ensure that the information is clear and accurate. They provide important details relevant to the matters being discussed and are included to help in understanding and reviewing the issues involved.

The annual report of Tripura Lokayukta 2017-18 shows the request received ,request disposed and request pending and rejected can classifies the information regarding the cases related to it and the amount of fees collected.

The Annual Report of Mizoram shows the list of corruption cases containing the gist of status of the case is uploaded on the official website and updated on a regular basis.

The annual report of Andhra Pradesh classifies the complaints status department wise

The annual report of Telangana shows the statistical data of the complaints filed pending and disposed of during the period under review.

The annual report of Telangana refers to the statistical data of the complaints referred to the investigation wing for investigation and reports during the period under review.

The annual report of andhra pradesh for the year 2022 shows the statement showing the particulars of complaints recieved disposed off and pending before the honble lokayukta of andhra pradesh during the period from 01.02.2023 to 31.12.2023.

The annual report of mizoram lokayukta shows the status of complaint cases in the year 2021-2022.

The Annual report of the lokayukta of Andhra Pradesh shows the complain status for the years 2020,2021,2022.

The annual report of andhra pradesh lokayukta shows the status of complaints and classifies it district-wise.

The annual report of karnataka show the statement showing complaints(with Affidavit) pending at the beginning ,received and disposed off during the year and pending at the end of the year and shows the manner of disposal of complaints.

The annual report of karnataka lokayukta show the statement of cases under investigation under this Prevention of corruption Act pending at the beginning of the year,cases registered during the year and the cases disposed off during the year and pending at the end of the year.

The annual report of karnataka lokayukta shows the statement showing the departmental enquiries pending at the beginning of the year received disposed off during the year and pending at the end of the year and also shows the manner of disposal of enquiry cases.

The karnataka lokayukta annual report shows the pending cases ,cases received and cases disposed  in various sections.

The karnataka lokayukta annual report show the statement showing the details of trial cases pending at the beginning of the year, cases filed during the year and disposed off during the year 2021-22.

The gujarat lokayukta annual report shows the annexure regarding the investigation and the list of progress made in investigation cases durinf the period from -+01/04/2022 to 31/03/2023

The harayana lokayukta annual report shows the annexure regarding showing the statement showing the list of complaints/grievance received during the period from 19/07/2021 to 31/03/2022.

the annual report of chhattisgarh shows the disposal in lok adalats in 2022 has created a new benchmark of success following are data for year 2022.