8member panel to search for next Lokpal chairperson
NEW DELHI: The government on Thursday constituted an eightmember search committee to recommend names for chairperson and members of the anti-corruption ombudsman, Lokpal. A ministry of personnel order said the search committee would be headed by former SC judge Ranjana Prakash Desai. The remaining seven members include Isro head AS Kiran Kumar.
NEW DELHI: The government on Thursday constituted an eightmember search committee to recommend names for chairperson and members of the anti-corruption ombudsman, Lokpal.
A ministry of personnel order said the search committee would be headed by former Supreme Court judge, Ranjana Prakash Desai.
The remaining seven members include retired IAS officer Lalit K Panwar, former Allahabad high court judge Sakha Ram Singh Yadav, former chief of State Bank of India (SBI) Arundhati Bhattacharya, Prasar Bharati chairperson A Surya Prakash, Indian Space Research Organisation head AS Kiran Kumar, former Gujarat police chief SS Khandwawala and former solicitor general Ranjit Kumar. “The process of Lokpal selection is underway as per the guidelines laid down in the Lokpal Act,” said minister of state for personnel Dr Jitendra Singh.
As per the guidelines, the search committee would recommend the names to a selection committee headed by the Prime Minister and having as its members the Lok Sabha speaker, leader of the opposition in the lower house, the chief justice of India or a judge of the apex court nominated by him, and an eminent jurist who could be nominated by the president or any other member. In April this year, President Ram Nath Kovind had nominated former attorney general Mukul Rohatgi as the ‘eminent jurist’ on the panel. His appointment came on the recommendation of the selection panel against the vacancy created following the death of senior advocate PP Rao. Officials said the government chose members of the search committee as per the guidelines laid down in the Lokpal Act, which says the panel should have at least 50% of the members from among SC, ST, OBC, women or minority communities.