An NGO has appealed to the Nagaland government to allow the newly appointed Lokayukta to work independently “without lack of prosecution powers”.
The Nagaland Voluntary Consumers’ Organisation (NVCO), in a statement, on Wednesday also urged the state government to provide the Lokayukta with sufficient and proper facilities so as to enable it to work as the most effective and powerful statutory body that is empowered to probe complaints of abuse of position and corruption against public servants.
Nagaland governor PB Acharya appointed former chief justice of Meghalaya High Court Justice Uma Nath Singh as Lokayukta of Nagaland on February 1.
Expressing happiness that the anti-corruption ombudsman Lokayukta has been established for the state, NVCO president Kezhokhoto Savi hoped the New Year will be a year of social justice for the state.
Saying social justice is the need of the hour, the NVCO, the most vocal consumers’ organisation of the state, said the citizens of Nagaland should now look up to Lokayukta to work without fear in bringing social justice to the Naga society.
It said the offices, including the chief minister’s office, comes under the ambit of the Lokayukta.
When any individual makes a complaint relating to corruption, mal-administration, favouritism, nepotism etc. against a public servant, the Lokayukta looks into such matters and investigates, the organisation said and added if the allegations are true, the public servant is punished, the consumer said.
It said, “To guarantee social justice in our Naga society, our so-called leaders in power especially legislators, bureaucrats and technocrats are to be honest. To bring social justice, it is as simple as eradicating corruption as eradicating poverty”.
“Lokayukta protects the rights of citizens against maladministration, corruption, delay, inefficiency, non-transparency, abuse of position, improper conduct, etc. Lokayukta is the representative of legislature and a powerful friend of citizens,” the organisation said.