Cabinet gives nod to amend Lokpal Act

The main amendment relates to the composition of the Selection Committee for choosing the chairperson and members of Lokpal.

The Union Cabinet on Wednesday gave approval to amend the Lokpal and Lokayuktas Act, 2013 (1 of 2014) and the Delhi Special Police Establishment Act, 1946 (25 of 1946) to address some “crucial deficiencies” in both the legislations.

The Cabinet has also cleared the introduction of a Bill during the winter session of Parliament on the lines of the Lokpal and Lokayuktas amendment Bill.

The main amendment relates to the composition of the Selection Committee for choosing the chairperson and members of Lokpal. The amendment will provide that “when there is no Leader of Opposition in the House of the People, recognised as such, the expression Leader of Opposition shall include the leader of the largest party in Opposition in the Lok Sabha”. The other amendment is related to qualification for the director of prosecution in the CBI and his/her functional independence. “The proposed amendments will also address other deficiencies in the Lokpal and Lokayuktas Act, 2013,” the government said in a release.

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The government further said that the amendments seek to synchronise the provisions of the Lokpal and Lokayuktas Act with the existing regulating laws, rules and regulations in respect of declaration of assets and liabilities by various categories of public servants.

Other decisions

* Nod to create five posts of Additional Solicitors General, one each for the High Courts of Punjab & Haryana, Patna, Jharkhand, Gujarat, Karnataka and its Circuit Benches at Hubli-Dharwad and Gulbarga.

* Clearance for transfer of land for the implementation of Metro Rail projects. The proposal is to restrict central ministries/ departments/ PSUs from asking for land in exchange for land required for Metro projects.

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