New Members Sworn In at Lokpal of India

Justice Ritu Raj Awasthi has taken oath as the new judicial member of the Lokpal (ombudsman) on 27 March 2024. The oath was administered by Justice AM Khanwilkar, the Chairman of the Lokpal of India. Central Vigilance Commissioner Praveen Kumar Srivastava and senior officers from CBI and Enforcement Directorate were present.

Pankaj Kumar and Ajay Tirkey Also Join as Members

• Pankaj Kumar and Ajay Tirkey have been sworn in as new members of the Lokpal.
• The swearing-in ceremony took place on 27 March 2024 at the Lokpal Office in New Delhi.
• Two judicial members, Justice PK Mohanty and Justice Abhilasha Kumari, completed their tenure on 26 March.
• Three other members, DK Jain, Archana Ramasundaram, and Mahendra Singh, also completed their tenure on 26 March.

About the New Members

• Justice Ritu Raj Awasthi served as the Chairperson of the 22nd Law Commission of India before joining the Lokpal. He was previously the Chief Justice of the Karnataka High Court.
• Pankaj Kumar is a 1986 batch IAS officer from Gujarat cadre. Before joining the Lokpal, he was the Chief Secretary of Gujarat.
• Ajay Tirkey is a 1987 batch IAS officer from Madhya Pradesh cadre. He was the Secretary of the Department of Land Resources, Government of India, before joining the Lokpal.

History of Ombudsman and Lokpal

• The institution of the Ombudsman was first established in Sweden in 1809.
• The concept gained popularity globally after being adopted by New Zealand and Norway in 1962.
• In India, the idea of a constitutional ombudsman was first proposed in Parliament in the early 1960s by Law Minister Ashok Kumar Sen.
• The terms Lokpal and Lokayukta were introduced by jurist LM Singhvi.
• After several failed attempts, the Lokpal and Lokayukta Act, 2013 was passed due to pressure from the India Against Corruption Movement led by Anna Hazare.
• The Act provided for the institution of the Lokpal at the Center and Lokayuktas in the States to investigate allegations of corruption against public officials.