Retired high court judge, justice Dhrub Narayan Upadhyay will be the new Lokayukta of Jharkhand. He retired on August 9, 2016. The announcement is likely to be made within a day or two.
The committee headed by chief minister Raghubar Das put the seal on Upadhyay’s name as state ombudsman after a meeting on Sunday. Jharkhand’s acting chief justice PK Mohanty and opposition leader Hemant Soren attended the meeting held at the chief minister’s residential office.
The Lokayukta’s post was lying vacant for more than a year following completion of the tenure of Amreshwar Sahay on January 2, 2016. Decks for appointment of Lokayukta were cleared on Sunday. Das had, a day earlier, announced in the state assembly that the Lokayukta would be appointed shortly.
The Lokayukta is a quasijudicial body that plays a part in providing clean, transparent and accountable government to the people. It acts as a watchdog to pinpoint wrongdoings of the administration, looks into complaints of victims of corrupt elements and suggests measures to improve the effectiveness and efficiency of the government.
Jharkhand Lokayukta Act was incorporated from Bihar following the creation of the new state and enacted in 2001. The office of Jharkhand Lokayukta became functional on December 4, 2004, with former Jharkhand high court judge, justice Laxman Oraon, appointed as the first Lokayukta. After his superannuation in 2009, justice Amareshwar Sahay, a former judge of Jharkhand HC, was appointed to the post.
{{/usCountry}}Jharkhand Lokayukta Act was incorporated from Bihar following the creation of the new state and enacted in 2001. The office of Jharkhand Lokayukta became functional on December 4, 2004, with former Jharkhand high court judge, justice Laxman Oraon, appointed as the first Lokayukta. After his superannuation in 2009, justice Amareshwar Sahay, a former judge of Jharkhand HC, was appointed to the post.
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