New Delhi: A Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) delegation, led by senior leader L.K. Advani, met President Pratibha Patil Friday and asked her to intervene in the issue of Gujarat Governor Kamla Beniwal appointing a Lokayukta without consulting the state government.

Party president Nitin Gadkari, Leader of Opposition in the Rajya Sabha Arun Jaitley and Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha Sushma Swaraj were also present in the meeting.

"The notification was issued without taking any suggestions from the chief minister or state cabinet... so we came to the president and asked her to intervene and correct what was being done against the constitution," Advani told reporters.

"What happened in Gujarat is a violation of the constitution. The constitution does not allow the governor to appoint a Lokayukta without consulting the chief minister and state cabinet," Advani said.

The president, he added, asked if the matter was subjudice. The party replied in the affirmative and asked her to intervene so the issue could be sorted out without going to court.

"Arunji said we have come to you so that the issue can be sorted out without the intervention of the court. If the central government intervenes and the notification is cancelled, the issue will be sorted out," Advani said.

The BJP, which is the ruling party in Gujarat, has been upset over the controversial appointment of the Lokayukta in the state by the governor, bypassing the state government.

Both houses of parliament were disrupted on the issue Friday.

Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi also wrote to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh Thursday.

Beniwal last week appointed retired judge Justice R.A. Mehta as the state Lokayukta. The Gujarat government has challenged the decision in the high court. The post was lying vacant for the past seven years.

 

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