Here's all you need to know about the Lokpal appointment issue

Ruchira KondepudiMoneycontrol News 

The Supreme Court on Tuesday said it hoped that the committee set up to select a Lokpal comes out with a shortlist of names for the post quickly.

The bench of Justices Ranjan Gogoi, Navin Sinha and R Banumathi said the matter will be heard again on July 24, after the central government submits a report on a meeting scheduled for Thursday.

The meeting will involve Attorney General KK Venugopal and the selection committee. Its purpose is to set up a search panel that will be responsible for making the appointment.

The Supreme Court bench said that the search panel will have to lay down the rules and criteria for the selection of the Lokpal.

Who has filed the petition? 

The petition has been filed by an NGO called Common Cause, which is being represented by senior lawyer Prashant Bhushan.

The petition questions why the Lokpal has not been appointed as yet, despite an order by the apex court in April last year.

What exactly is the Lokpal? 

The Lokpal is meant to be an anti-corruption body comprising of a chairperson and a maximum of eight people.

The ombudsman will look into allegations of corruption against administrators and legislators. However, it will not have the power to investigate the armed forces.

The Lokpal is appointed by a five-member selection committee, according to the Lokpal Act passed in 2013.

Who forms the five-member selection committee? 

The selection committee will be headed by the Prime minister and will comprise of the Chief Justice of India, the Lok Sabha Speaker, the leader of the largest opposition party and an eminent jurist.

In May this year, the Centre had appointed senior advocate Mukul Rohatgi as the eminent jurist on the panel.

The Supreme Court has previously said that the appointment was delayed due to the absence of a Leader of the Opposition in Lok Sabha.

But the court had said last year that the absence of the opposition leader should not come in the way of the appointment of the Lokpal.

The post of the opposition leader in Lok Sabha has been vacant since 2014, because none of the opposition parties hold the required 10 percent of seats.