Government may soon be the power to sanction or deny probe

NEW DELHI: With bureaucrats complaining of harassment in the light of former coal secretary HC Gupta’s emotional plea to a court this week in the coal scam, the government could take the power of allowing/disallowing such future probes into its own hands.

The proposed prevention of corruption (amendment) bill stipulates that probe agencies must obtain sanction of Lokpal or state Lokayuktas before initiating probe against any serving or retired government official. But a parliamentary panel has proposed the sanction power must be with the competent authority (ministry/department) at the Centre or state.

"Several stakeholders stated that the grant of sanction by Lokpal/Lokayukta for prosecuting public servants under Section 23 of the Lokpal & Lokayuktas Act, 2013, may be ultra vires of Article 311 of Constitution. It was felt that disciplinary/appointing authority should retain the power to grant sanction of prosecution of government servant," the panel, headed by BJP MP Bhupendra Yadav, said in its report.

If government accepts the recommendation, this will only be in cases where the alleged offence is "relatable to any recommendation made or decision taken by such a public servant in discharge of his official functions or duties and where the official has not been caught redhanded accepting the bribe".

Gupta, the former coal secretary, was booked by CBI after his retirement. Under the present Prevention of Corruption Act, 1988, no protection by way of prior sanction from government is available to retired officials. Gupta has pleaded innocence saying he did not commit any corruption and was only discharging his official duty.