Zeenews Bureau
New Delhi: The Congress on Wednesday welcomed the Supreme Court verdict on the appointment of Lokayukta in Gujarat and attacked the main opposition party BJP for its double standards on the issue of corruption.
Speaking to a private TV news channel minutes after the verdict was announced, senior Congress leader and I&B Minister Manish Tewari said, “The Supreme Court verdict on the appointment of Lokayukta in Gujarat is a setback for the BJP government in Gujarat, which has strongly opposed the move. This itself shows the double standards of the party, which has been crying hoarse on the Lokpal issue and attacking the centre but doing nothing in its own state.”
The I&B Minister further stated that the Congress party wants to know what has been the reason and why the Modi government refrained from appointing a Lokayukta for ten long years.
“The appointment of Lokayukta was upheld by the state’s High Court earlier and today the apex court has upheld the appointment done by Gujarat Governor Kamla Beniwal and termed it constitutional. This itself shows the autocratic functioning of the state’s Chief Minister Narendra Modi, who fought for 10 long years opposing the Lokauykta mechanism.”
The reactions from the Congress party came shortly after the Supreme Court ruled that that the appointment of retired judge RA Mehta as the state's Lokayukta or ombudsman is valid.
Modi had challenged the appointment on the grounds that the Governor of the state, Kamala Beniwal, had not consulted his Cabinet.
First Published: Wednesday, January 02, 2013, 11:27