The Supreme Court has sought Centre’s response on a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) that challenges the current practice of appointing of the Comptroller and Auditor General of India (CAG).
The PIL challenges the current practice of appointing the CAG solely by the executive and the Prime Minister, arguing that it violates the Constitution.
A bench of Justices Surya Kant and N. Kotiswar Singh issued a notice on the PIL filed by the NGO, Centre for Public Interest Litigation, and linked it with a similar ongoing case.
Advocate Prashant Bhushan, representing the NGO, argued that the issue is about the independence of the institution. He claimed that audits by the CAG in states like Maharashtra, where the BJP is in power, are being delayed.
The PIL also asked the court to direct that the CAG be appointed by the President after consulting an independent and neutral selection committee, which would include the prime minister, the leader of the opposition, and the chief justice of India.
It called for the appointment process to be transparent, similar to the appointment of other bodies like the Information Commissions and the Central Vigilance Commission.