Justice Sodhi Front Runner to be New Lokayukta
Bangalore, Sep 21 (Bangalore Mirror): The next Lokayukta could well be a person from outside Karnataka, sources claim, even as the state government began the hunt for the successor to Justice Shivaraj Patil.
Having been severely criticised over the appointment of Justice Patil, the state government is seriously thinking of having an outsider as the new Lokayukta. This for two reasons: For one, there aren’t many judges left who do not own a site in the controversy-ridden Judicial Employees House Building Cooperative Society or qualify for the post and two, a man from ‘outside’ would have fewer — if any — relatives.
After merely 48 days in office, Patil quit after Bangalore Mirror’s expose on him and his wife circumventing rules to acquire separate properties in their names. Patil had also acquired a site in the Judicial Employees HBCS.
Chief minister DV Sadananda Gowda met governor H R Bhardwaj on Tuesday and the Lokayukta issue was extensively discussed. Justice N K Sodhi, former High Court of Karnataka chief justice and retired Supreme Court judge, emerged the front runner to succeed Patil.
Few options
A senior minister said: “I don’t think there are any judges from Karnataka who do not have a site in the Judicial Employees HBCS (with the exception of former Lokayukta, justice N Santosh Hegde and former chief justice of India, M N Venkatachalaiah). Moreover someone from outside will also have fewer relatives here. So, there is less chance for nepotism.”
According to the Lokayukta Act, a person can become the Lokayukta if he or she is a former high court chief justice and a retired Supreme Court judge.
Two judges from Karnataka, both retired Supreme Court judges, are reluctant to take up the post after seeing what happened to Justice Patil. With few viable options, Sodhi is being seriously considered. Sodhi was also on the shortlist of candidates when Patil was appointed Lokayukta.
He is known for delivering landmark judgments during his tenure in Karnataka. Also in his favour is the fact that he is well aware of matters pertaining to the state.
The government now has to shortlist three names for the post. The CM will then consult the chief justice of the High Court of Karnataka, opposition leaders and presiding officers of both the houses of the legislature. A successor to Justice Patil will then be selected.