The Supreme Court recently ordered on the appointment of the Lokpal.
What is the order about?
Leader of Opposition (LoP) in Lok Sabha is a part of the selection committee of Lokpal.
The second largest part in Lok Sabha should have at least 10% of the total LS seats in order to get the status of Opposition Party.
There is no LoP in the current House, since the Congress does not have the required 10% seats.
An amendment has been proposed to substitute the position of the Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha with the leader of the single largest opposition party on the selection committee.
The Court order clarified that The Lokpal can be appointed under the Lokpal and Lokayuktas Act, 2013, without waiting for then amendment.
The court clarified that there is no justification to keep the enforcement of the Act under suspension till the amendments are carried out.
What should be done?
It is time for a Lokpal in India.
But equally, it is crucial that the institution should be fair and independent, that it should rise above partisan political interests and be insulated from government interference.
In this context, the presence of the LoP on the selection committee, alongside the PM, LS Speaker, Chief Justice of India or his nominee and an eminent jurist, is enormously important.
It is a real and symbolic assurance of the institution’s autonomy from the ruling regime.
The court order is also against the principle of separation of powers that is so fundamental to a constitutional democracy.
