PANAJI: The Goa government has informed the High Court of Bombay at Goa that the process to appoint a new Lokayukta is underway and will be completed within six weeks. The court accepted the assurance and disposed of the petition filed by TMC's Trajano D’Mello.
The Directorate of Vigilance had written to the Chief Secretary in February 2025 to initiate the process of shortlisting candidates, but no progress was made until now.
The office of the Lokayukta has been non-functional since December 2024, nearly two months after the tenure of Justice (retd) Ambadas Joshi ended. Around 20 corruption-related cases remain pending.
Joshi had been appointed in April 2021, following a six-month gap after the term of his predecessor, Justice (retd) P K Misra, ended in September 2020. Earlier, Justice (retd) U V Bakre was shortlisted but withdrew his consent in March 2021, citing personal reasons.
Currently, the government has received three names of retired judges from Goa, West Bengal, and Andhra Pradesh for the Lokayukta post. A three-member committee, including Chief Minister Pramod Sawant and Leader of the Opposition Yuri Alemao, will make the final appointment once a suitable candidate is identified.
