Lokpal appointment: Supreme Court orders Centre to file affidavit in 10 days detailing time frame, steps taken

The Supreme Court on Monday asked the Centre to file an affidavit indicating a time frame for the appointment of a Lokpal. The bench also ordered the Centre to mention in its status report the details of steps it will take to appoint the anti-corruption ombudsman.After the bench comprising justices Ranjan Gogoi and R Banumathi asked the government when it would appoint a Lokpal, Attorney-General KK Venugopal said that the panel headed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi was likely to meet soon. The Centre has 10 days to file its affidavit.The Supreme Court scheduled the next hearing for 7 July.Last year, the Supreme Court had said there was no "justification" to delay the Lokpal appointment as the Lokpal law was "workable" as it stands today. In March, former attorney-general Mukul Rohatgi had argued that the government was not dragging its feet on taking up the Lokpal and Lokayuktas and Other Related Law (Amendment) Bill, 2014, and that the legislation may be taken up during the Monsoon Session.The court was hearing a batch of petitions filed by NGO Common Cause seeking a mandamus to the government to take steps to enforce the law, which was enacted in 2013. The organisation had filed a contempt petition, raising the issue of non-appointment of Lokpal despite the top court's verdict of 27 April, 2017.