Jan Sangram Parishat founder-president S.R. Hiremath has written to Congress president Sonia Gandhi urging her to prevent Chief Minister Siddaramaiah from weakening the institution of Lokayukta in the State.
Releasing copies of a seven-page letter to Ms. Gandhi at a press conference here on Thursday, Mr. Hiremath said that the Congress president had been urged to stop the Chief Minister from weakening the Lokayukta which was considered a model.
Mr. Hiremath said that Ms. Gandhi had been informed about the mala fide in Mr. Siddaramaiah’s move to set up the Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) thereby weakening the Lokayukta. He said that he had provided documents showing how he had misinterpreted the Supreme Court order to issue a Government Order on the formation of the Anti-Corruption Bureau. The order contains many controversial issues and the most sinister was that the Anti-Corruption Bureau would be headed by a secretary in the Department of Personnel and Administrative Reforms who reports to the Chief Secretary.
Besides, the order says that the Anti-Corruption Bureau must get permission of a competent authority even to begin investigation in a corruption case. It clearly seems that the purpose is to protect the corrupt. The government showed undue hurry in transferring pending cases before the Lokayukta police wing to the Anti-Corruption Bureau. The purpose of creating the Anti-Corruption Bureau hurriedly was to save Mr. Siddaramaiah and Ministers facing inquiries before the Lokayukta, he said.
