New Delhi: The Supreme Court in a suo motu proceeding has stayed the Lokpal order which held that it can entertain complaints against high court judges under the Lokpal and Lokayuktas Act, 2013.
The Lokpal, headed by former Supreme Court Justice A.M. Khanwilkar, in two separate orders dated January 2025 had held that it can investigate corruption allegations against judges of the high courts.
In an order dated January 8, a full bench of the Lokpal headed by Justice Kanwilkar while dismissing a complaint against former Chief Justice of India D.Y. Chandrachud held that judges of the Supreme Court cannot be brought under the jurisdiction of the Lokpal as the apex court was not constituted under an Act of parliament but under Article 134 of the constitution.
As reported by The Wire, the Lokpal in the same order also held that judges of other courts, including the high courts, are under the ambit of the anti-corruption watchdog.
In a separate order dated January 27, the Lokpal while dealing with a complaint against a high court judge, without entering into the merits of the complaint, ruled:
“We make it amply clear that by this order we have decided a singular issue finally – as to whether the Judges of the High Court established by an Act of Parliament come within the ambit of Section 14 of the Act of 2013, in the affirmative. No more and no less. In that, we have not looked into or examined the merits of the allegations at all.”
A three-judge bench of the Supreme Court comprising Justices B.R. Gavai, Surya Kant and A.S. Oka took cognisance of the Lokpal’s orders on Wednesday (January 19) and heard the matter on Thursday (February 20).
This report, first published at 11 pm on February 19, was updated with the news of the order a day later, at 11 am on February 20.
