(a) whether the Government has issued the final guidelines for the disclosure of income and assets of Government employees under the Lokpal Act; and
(b) if so, the details thereof?
(a) whether the Government has issued the final guidelines for the disclosure of income and assets of Government employees under the Lokpal Act; and
(b) if so, the details thereof?
Minister of State in the Ministry of Personnel, Public Grievances and Pensions and Minister of State in the Prime Minister’s Office. (DR. JITENDRA SINGH)
(a) & (b): The Lokpal and Lokayuktas Act, 2013 does not contain any separate provision for issuance of any guidelines by Government for disclosure of income and assets of Government employees. Section 44 of the said Act mandates that every public servant (as defined in the Act, which includes Ministers, Members of Parliament, Government employees, employees of statutory bodies, PSUs, etc.) shall make a declaration of his assets and liabilities in the manner as provided by or under the said Act. Further, sub-section (5) of section 44 of the Act mandates that the information and annual return regarding assets and liabilities shall be furnished by the public servant to the competent authority in such form and in such manner as may be prescribed by rules made under the said Act. Accordingly, in exercise of the powers conferred by sub-section (1) read with clause (k) and clause (l) of sub-section (2) of section 59 of the Lokpal and Lokayuktas Act, 2013 (1 of 2014), read with section 44 and section 45 of the said Act, the Central Government has notified the Public Servants (Furnishing of Information and Annual Return of Assets and Liabilities and the Limits for Exemption of Assets in Filing Returns) Rules, 2014 in the official Gazette on 14th July, 2014.
The said rules originally provided that the public servants who have filed declarations, information and annual returns of property under the provisions of the rules applicable to such public servants shall file the revised declarations, information or as the case may be, annual returns as on the 1st day of August, 2014, to the competent authority on or before the 15th day of September, 2014. The above provision in the said rules has subsequently been amended by a notification dated 8th September, 2014, by which the time limit, for furnishing of such information/return by public servants, has been extended till 31st December, 2014.