In a significant judgement, the High Court of Karnataka on Thursday abolished the Anti Corruption Bureau (ACB), formed by the state government in 2016 by withdrawing the Lokayukta police wing’s power under Prevention of Corruption (PC) Act.
Allowing a batch of petitions filed challenging the creation of ACB, a division bench comprising Justice B Veerappa and Justice K S Hemalekha said that all pending cases before the ACB will now get transferred to the Lokayukta police wing.
The court held that the state government was not justified in constituting the ACB by an executive government order when the Lokayukta Act occupied the field to eradicate corruption. The court also held that the state was also not justified in issuing subsequent notification dated March 19, 2016, superseding earlier notification that authorised the Lokayukta police with the powers of investigation under Prevention of Corruption Act as well as the status of a police station.
“Since this court has quashed the impugned government order and impugned government notification dated 19-03-2016, the Anti Corruption Bureau is abolished. But, all the enquiries, investigations, and other disciplinary proceedings pending before the ACB will get transferred to the Lokayukta police,” the bench said.
The petitions were filed by the Advocates’ Association of Bangalore, Samaj Parivartana Samudaya (NGO) and others challenging the decision of the government withdrawing the investigation powers of the Lokayukta police under the PC Act and extending it to the newly formed ACB. The then Siddaramaiah government had brought the newly created ACB under the Department of Personnel and Administrative Reforms.
Published 11 August 2022, 09:51 IST