NEW DELHI: The Supreme Court on Wednesday dismissed Gujarat government's plea challenging governor Kamla Beniwal's decision to appoint Justice (retd) R A Mehta as Lokayukta without consulting it.
Gujarat government had challenged the appointment on the grounds that the governor Kamala Beniwal had not consulted the state government.
A bench of Justices B S Chauhan and F M Ibrahim Kalifulla passed the order on the state's appeal against the order of the Gujarat high court which had upheld the governor's decision last January.
The high court's verdict had been delivered by Justice V M Sahai after a division bench gave a split judgement on the legitimacy of the governor's action in Justice Mehta's appointment as Lokayukta.
Justice Sahai, who decided the matter as a third judge, had also pulled up Gujarat chief minister Narendra Modi for creating a constitutional crisis and held that the governor had the discretionary power to make the appointment. He had said the "pranks" played by the chief minister on the Lokayukta issue "demonstrates deconstruction of our democracy."
Challenging the high court's order, the state government had contended that the personal discretion exercised by the governor in unilaterally issuing the warrant of appointment of Lokayukta was "unwarranted."
Supreme Court upholds appointment of Gujarat's Lokayukta
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Supreme Court upholds appointment of Gujarat's Lokayukta
