NEW DELHI: The Supreme Court Monday sought response from the Centre on a plea that the leader of the single largest opposition party be treated as the Leader of the Opposition and be included in high-level committees involved in the appointment of heads of statutory bodies like CBI, CVC, CIC and Lokpal.
The apex court issued notice to the Centre and the four statutory bodies on the PIL seeking direction that wherever the appointing committee includes the Leader of the Opposition, the same may be read as to mean the leader of the single largest opposition party in that House.
The top court also sought response from the Centre on the plea by ‘Youth for Equality’ NGO, seeking the quashing of section 17A of the Prevention of Corruption Act which provides a blanket protection to all public servants regardless of status from enquiry in graft cases.
The NGO contended that the amendment by which section 17A has been incorporated was discriminatory, manifestly arbitrary and ultra vires of Articles 14 and 21 of the Constitution as it requires sanction for initiating action against the public servants.
A Bench comprising Chief Justice Ranjan Gogoi and S K Kaul after brief hearing agreed to examine the two issues but declined to entertain the plea that sought decisions on appointment of the Director CBI, the Central Vigilance Commissioner, the Chief Information Commissioner and the Lokpal be taken by unanimous vote of the appointing committee.
Advocate Gopal Shankarnaryan, appearing for the NGO, submitted that unfortunately, four of those statutory bodies — the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), the Central Vigilance Commission (CVC), the Central Information Commission (CIC), and the Lokpal — have all been limited in their functioning and interfered with by virtue of overwhelming governmental control.
While challenging section 17A, the advocate traced the history of such protection given to the public servants which time and again has been held as unconstitutional by the apex court.
The petition said the attempt by the central government to protect civil servants from so-called vexatious enquiries at the threshold (also known as the “single directive”) was first quashed by the apex court in Vineet Narain case in 1997.
The decision related to investigation of allegations of corruption against high-ranking public officials and amendments in the DSPE Act.
The plea said the same was resurrected as Section 6-A of the Delhi Special Police Establishment Act, 1946 with effect from September 12, 2003 and once again, the provision was challenged on the ground of violation of Article 14 of the Constitution by making an irrational classification as well as impeding the due process of criminal investigation, the plea said.
It said by way of a unanimous Constitution Bench judgment in 2014 the provision was struck down on the anvil of Article 14.
“Unfortunately, yet again, by way of an amendment, this time to the Prevention of Corruption Act, 1988, Section 17-A has come to be inserted,” the petition stated.
The issue of treating the leader of the single largest party as the leader of opposition has been raised as where such individual is not explicitly recognized as leader of opposition, he or she would merely be called upon as an “invitee”, thereby subverting the statutory intent.
“Lack of notification or invitation to such person must not be allowed to delay key institutional appointments,” the petition said, adding that the government must not be allowed to frustrate the selection process for lack of notification of a substitute for the Leader of Opposition if none is automatically forthcoming from election results.
Such a situation is prevailing in the current Lok Sabha wherein the Congress emerged as the single largest opposition party in the 2014 Lok Sabha elections but it did not have the minimum 10 per cent of the total strength of the Lok Sabha, or 55 seats, to be eligible as the Leader of Opposition.
The Centre appoints the CBI director on the recommendation of the committee consisting of the Prime Minister as Chairperson and the Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha and the Chief Justice of India or Judge of the Supreme Court nominated by him as Members.
The composition of the Selection Committee for the CVC comprises of the Prime Minister as Chairperson and Minister of Home Affairs and the Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha as members.
CIC is appointed on the recommendation of the Committee consisting of the Prime Minister (Chairperson), the Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha and a Union Cabinet Minister to be nominated by the Prime Minister.
The Lokpal is appointed on the recommendation of the panel consisting of the Prime Minister-Chairperson, the Speaker of the Lok Sabha, the Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha, the Chief Justice of India or a Judge of the Supreme Court nominated by him as Member and one eminent jurist, as recommended by the chairperson. (AGENCIES)
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