PIL for Lokayukta: SC seeks copy of 2011 U'khand law

The Supreme Court on Wednesday sought a copy of the 2011 Uttarakhand law on Lokayukta from a person, who has filed a PIL seeking a direction to the state government to appoint the ombudsman.

A Bench of Chief Justice TS Thakur and Justice R Banumathi, which did not issue notice on the plea, asked Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader and advocate Ashwani Kumar Upadhaya, who has filed the PIL, to furnish a copy of the Act within two weeks.

"This is the Bill, where is the Act (the Uttarakhand Lokayukta Act-2011)," the court asked and adjourned the hearing on the plea.

Upadhaya, in his plea, has said the Act was one of the "best and effective" and was "unanimously passed" by the Assembly in 2011.

"This writ petition is being filed ...for implementation of the Uttarakhand Lokayukta Act, 2011. Uttarakhand is without the Lokayukta since September 2013, while more than 700 complaints related to corruption are pending," the plea said.