Government Likely To Appoint Former Supreme Court Judge As Next Lokpal, TMC Leader Notes Concern
According to a report, government is likely to appoint former Supreme Court judge A.M. Khanwilkar as the next Lokpal of India. The decision was made after a high-level meeting regarding the appointment of the Lokpal. The meeting for shortlisting the names for the position was reportedly held on Wednesday which included Prime Minister Modi, Chief Justice of India D.Y. Chandrachud, jurist and former Attorney General of India K.K. Venugopal and the Congress leader Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury.
Drawing the attention of the public to the issues of providing post-retirement benefits to the Supreme Court judges, Trinamool Congress (TMC) MP Saket Gokhale today called for a law to prevent the perks provided by the government after the judge”s retirement. Taking to Twitter, the TCM leader noted the government’s plan to appoint former Supreme Court judge Justice AM Khanwilkar as India’s next Lokpal.
In his post on X (formerly Twitter), the TMC MP pointed out that the judge who upheld the draconian provisions of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PLMA) enhancing the ED’s powers on the day before his retirement is likely to be appointed as the next Lokpal. Lokpal is an anti-corruption body tasked with investigating allegations of corruption against public functionaries falling within the scope of the Lokpal Act.
Pointing out the importance of the law to prevent the government from giving perks to retired judges, the TMC MP noted that the potential post-retirement perks would affect the judge”s impartiality during their tenure. “We need a law to prevent Supreme Court judges from being given post-retirement perks by the govt which affects their impartiality,” Saket Gokhale wrote.
The judge who upheld the draconian provisions of the PLMA strengthening the ED’s powers (on the day before his retirement) likely to be appointed as India’s next Lokpal.
We need a law to prevent SC judges from being giving post-retirement perks by the govt which affects their… pic.twitter.com/uVaWcCcEdd
— Saket Gokhale (@SaketGokhale) February 8, 2024
The Trinamool Congress leader was referring to reports suggesting the potential appointment of the former Supreme Court judge A.M. Khanwilkar as the next Lokpal of India.
However, the current acting chairperson of the Lokpal is the former chief justice of the Jharkhand High Court, Justice Pradip Kumar Mohanty after being appointed in 2022.
