Mysuru: Former Lokayukta Justice
Santosh Hegde welcomed the Supreme Court’s ruling on conducting a floor test in the Karnataka legislative assembly on Saturday. Hegde, in Mysuru to deliver a lecture at the Vidyavardhaka Law College on Friday, said, “While the governor’s decision to invite the BJP to form the government was the right one, giving the party 15 days to prove majority was not correct. The period will give BJP the chance to purchase MLAs.”
Pointing out that the SC ruling on the case would now be a law under Article 141 of the Constitution, Hegde said, “All states shall have to abide by it now. The situation was similar with the SR Bommai ruling, when the apex court ordered a floor test to prove the majority. But, I think that the governor giving 15 days to a party to prove majority is more.”
Queried about reports of MLAs being offered enormous sums, Hegde said, “There should be some record to prove such allegations. Horse trading is against the Constitution. But, voters are responsible for the hung assembly. They should not think about caste and community when they exercise their franchise. If they think there is no eligible candidate, they should opt for None Of The Above (NOTA).”
The former SC judge opined that, if a significant number of voters opted for NOTA, political parties would think twice before fielding candidates facing criminal charges. “In the assembly election, candidates with criminal charges contested, among whom, few also won. In a democracy, voters are supreme and they should choose the right leaders,” Hegde said.
On the present state of the Lokayukta, which has been rendered more or less a sinecure, Hegde said, “My report on mining was not implemented by the BJP. But the Congress leaders carried out a padayatra from Bengaluru to Ballari to protest illegal mining. But, when they came to power, they transferred the powers of the Lokayukta to the
Anti-Corruption Bureau. It’s the people who have been cheated. For a powerful democracy, there should be a powerful Lokayukta at the state level, and a Lokpal at the Centre.”