Lokayukta resigns
TEAM HERALD
teamherald@herald-goa.com
PANJIM: In a major setback to the State government, Goa Lokayukta Justice B Sudarshan Reddy has resigned from the post citing ‘personal reasons’. The resignation comes at a time when the ombudsmen was handed the iron ore mining case and to assess the quantum of the financial losses incurred due to illegal mining.
Chief Minister Manohar Parrikar told reporters, “He has pointed out that he wants to resign due to personal reason. We have accepted the resignation,” Parrikar said.
However, there is a buzz in circles that Reddy could be planning to contest Lok Sabha polls on the BJP ticket from Andhra Pradesh while other side states that he was not happy with the way things were panning out. However, the Chief Minister has refuted this saying that these were just ‘rumours’.
Reddy, the first ever Lokayukta of the state, took over the office in March 2013. His appointment was dogged by controversy with social activists opposing the appointment claiming it as a ‘political move’. His appointment has been challenged in the High Court.
After being sworn in on 16 March Justice Reddy had started probing some major
corruption cases in Goa with the illegal mining being the major case. The Lokayukta is also probing the alleged recruitment scandal in the agriculture and health departments. He had also sought statements of assets of all the MLAs, but three MLAs ~ Vishnu Wagh and Anant Shet from the BJP and Babu Kavalekar from the Congress ~ had failed to comply.
Justice Reddy has also been caught in a controversy over the separation of Telangana state, during his recent visit to Andhra Pradesh. The 67-year-old Justice Reddy retired as a Supreme Court judge on 8 July 2011
