Miffed with Modi govt, Justice Mehta refuses to take charge as Gujarat Lokayuta

In an embarrassment to the Gujarat government, Justice (retd) RA Mehta has refused to take charge as the state’s Lokayukta because the state government took a long time in notifying his appointment. In a letter to the state governor, Justice Mehta said that he cannot take up the position because of the mindset and attitude displayed by the state government, reported  Hindustan Times. Suggesting that the Modi administration fought tooth and nail to stall his appointment, he wrote, “Rs 45 crores of public money is said to have been spent by the Gujarat government in this litigation. This is a humongously disproportionate figure by any standard.” The state government had first moved the Gujarat High Court which upheld Justice Mehta’s appointment as Lokayukta. Then the Gujarat government challenged the High Court order in the Supreme Court which was also turned down. [caption id=“attachment_1016511” align=“alignright” width=“380”]  Image: ibnlive[/caption] It subsequently filed a review petition and then a curative petition, both of which were turned down. Gujarat does not have a Lokayukta since 2003 as the chief minister had vehemently opposed any move to appoint one. However, in 2011, Gujarat governor Dr Kamla Beniwal, based on the recommendation of the chief justice of the high court appointed Justice Mehta as Lokayukta bypassing the state administration. Subsequently, the Gujarat government fought a bitter legal battle in the high court and the apex court. However, Justice Mehta had refused to take over as the Lokayukta in January after his appointment was upheld by the Supreme Court as he wanted the Gujarat government to exhaust all its legal options.