Former HC judge Vishwanatha Shetty J to be new Karnataka Lokayukta

After much deliberation on the issue, the Governor of Karnataka has reportedly given the nod to former high court judge, Justice P Vishwanatha Shetty, to become the new Karnataka Lokayukta..Governor Vajubhai Vala had initially turned down the state government’s recommendation to appoint Justice Shetty. He reportedly took objection to the fact that the recommendation was made without proper scrutiny of the former judge’s personal record and antecedents..This, after SR Hiremath, a social activist of NGO Samaja Parivartana Samudaya, had written a letter to the Governor raising questions about Justice Shetty’s alleged ownership of illegal properties in Bangalore..However, the government had sent back the recommendation to the Governor earlier this week. The state’s Advocate General, Madhusushan Naik, reportedly submitted a report to the Governor clarifying the objections raised by him. Yesterday morning, Vala gave the green signal..The post has been a poisoned chalice of sorts ever since Justice Bhaskar Rao resigned as Lokayukta in December 2015, over an alleged extortion scam involving his son..He was due to be replaced by former Supreme Court judge Vikramajit Sen J, who eventually refused to be considered even after being recommended by Chief Justice of the High Court, SK Mukherjee. In an earlier interview with Bar & Bench, he was quoted as saying,.“I read a report which said that the Chief Minster was thinking twice about my appointment. I did my checking up and found that the reports were correct. That was out of line, since it was his own minister that asked me; I did not ask to be appointed. It demeans the office of the Karnataka Lokayukta.”.Later, it came to light that Chief Minister Siddaramaiah intended to recommend Justice SR Nayak, another former High Court judge, for the post. However, his recommendation was turned down by the Governor in light of allegations of corruption against him..Justice Shetty enrolled as an advocate in 1966, and was designated Senior Advocate in 1993. He was elevated as a judge of the Karnataka High Court in 1995 and retired in 2006. He was also the first President of the Karnataka Judicial Academy..Image taken from here.