New Delhi, Feb 16 (IANS): The Delhi High Court on Thursday disposed off a plea seeking appointment of the Lokayukta in the national capital after the Arvind Kejriwal government said that this was done in March last year.

A division bench of Chief Justice Satish Chandra Sharma and Justice Subramonium Prasad was hearing a plea filed in a form of Public Interest Litigation (PIL) seeking a direction to the city government to appoint a Lokayukta as promised by the party in its election manifesto of 2020.

During the hearing, counsel representing the government said that the petition has become infructuous as retired Jharkhand High Court judge Justice Harish Chandra Mishra was appointed as Lokayukta in March last year.

However, petitioner-lawyer Ashwini Kumar Upadhyay said that it was unfortunate that the Lokayukta was appointed only after a petition was filed by him in court.

In February last year, the Delhi Government apprised the High Court that the process for appointing a Lokayukta is underway.

In the PIL, Upadhyay had stated that the post of Lokayukta has been lying vacant since December 2020.

The petitioner, also a BJP leader, pointed out that the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) came into existence in the capital on promise of an independent and effective Lokayukta and mentioned it in its 2020 Assembly Election manifesto, and also in the 2015 and 2013 manifestos but they are still using the "outdated" and "ineffective" 1995 Act.

The PIL alleged: "When Justice Reva Khetrapal retired as Delhi Lokayukta, the Government did nothing to fill the post till date and hundreds of complaints relating to corruption are pending in the office."