Retd SC, HC judges among 16 in fray for post of lokpal chief

NEW DELHI: Three retired Supreme Court judges, a former high court chief justice, one ex-UGC member and an information commissioner are among 16 persons who are in the fray for the chairmanship of proposed anti-corruption body lokpal.
The list, made public by department of personnel and training (DoPT) after an order of information commissioner Sudhir Bhargava on the plea of Subhash Agrawal, shows the SC had nominated Justices Gyan Sudha Mishra, C K Prasad and Balbir Singh Chauhan, who have now retired, for the position.
Retired Chief Justice of Jharkhand HC M Karpaga Vinayagam, who is chairman, appellate tribunal for electricity, former UGC member and former information commissioner M M Ansari, information commissioner Sridhar Acharyulu are among those who have applied for the post.
In his directive, Bhargava had said the disclosure would enhance transparency and public confidence in the selection process.
DoPT had sought applications for one post of chairman and eight positions — four each for judicial and non-judicial members — in the anti-graft body on January 17, 2014. In response, 380 persons have applied for the post of non-judicial members which include former chief secretary J&K Ghulam Nabi Lone, former CIC Satyananda Mishra, former Delhi police commissioner Neeraj Kumar and former CBI special director K Saleem Ali, among others.