Corruption in India: Supreme Court Asks Modi Govt to Appoint Lokpal
As corruption has been increasing exponentially under the government of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Supreme Court today gave 10 days to the government to fix the time frame to appoint Lokpal, the top anti-corruption ombudsman in India. The next hearing will take place on July 17.
A report says “the court was hearing a contempt petition filed by NGO Common Cause, which had raised the issue of non-appointment of the ombudsman despite the apex court’s verdict of April 27 last year.”
Earlier, a Congress leader and Member of Parliament (Lok Sabha) Mallikarjun Kharge had declined to attend a meeting to select the Lokpal.
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The government had asked Kharge to participate in the meeting as a “special invitee” and not as a leader of opposition. In a letter to Modi, Kharge had indicated that it is only an eyewash exercise because the Modi government did not show any interest in the past over 3 years to appoint Lokpal.
Meanwhile, a new study reveals that corruption has increased considerably under the Modi government. CMS-India Corruption Study (CMS-ICS) 2018 claims that it has covered both rural and urban locations of 13 states and 11 public services.
According to the study, 75 percent households have the perception that the level of corruption in public services has either increased or remained same during the last 12 months.
