Removing Lokayukta: Speaker to take up discussion today

 Legislative Assembly Speaker Kagodu Thimmappa said he would take up for discussion on the floor of the House on Friday the petitions submitted by the BJP and the JD(S) seeking to move a motion for removing Lokayukta Justice Y Bhaskar Rao.

Both the parties contended in their petitions submitted on Tuesday to the presiding officers of the Legislative Assembly and the Council that the present Lokayukta should be removed on the grounds of “misconduct” and “incompetence”.

Speaking to reporters after a meeting with the floor leaders of various parties, Kagodu said, “I will take a decision on whether or not to admit the petition filed by the members after the discussion.”

Council chairman D H Shankaramurthy was also present at the meeting.
The motion, in all probability, would be admitted as a majority of the members were in favour of it. A similar process is likely to be taken up in the Council, sources say. If the Speaker allows the motion under the provisions of the Karnataka Lokayukta (Amendment) Act 2015, then the petition will be referred to the Chief Justice of the Karnataka High Court for conducting an investigation into the grounds on which the removal of the Lokayukta is sought by the legislators. In the Lower House, as many as 46 BJP and 36 JD(S) MLAs signed the petition, while in the Upper House, 29 BJP and 12 JD(S) MLCs signed on the dotted line, meeting the numbers (one-third of the total strength of each of the two Houses) required to move a motion for the removal of the Lokayukta.

Kagodu and Shankaramurthy summoned ADGP Kamal Pant, who heads a special investigation team to investigate allegations of corruption in the institution of Lokayukta, and also Advocate General Madhusudhan Naik.

If the report of the Chief Justice or the judge nominated finds the Lokayukta guilty of misconduct or incapacity, then both Houses can pass a motion with a two-thirds majority that the anti-corruption watchdog should be removed.