Former SC judge PC Ghose likely to be India's first Lokpal, official announcement likely on Monday

Former Supreme Court judge, Justice Pinaki Chandra Ghose, is likely to be appointed India's first Lokpal. The government is expected to make an official announcement on his appointment on Monday, sources said.

Justice Ghose was elevated to the top court in 2013 and retired in 2017. 

According to reports, his name was finalised by the selection committee, comprising the prime minister, chief justice of India, Lok Sabha speaker and an eminent jurist, on Friday.

Earlier, the Supreme Court had ordered the Lokpal search committee to recommend by February end a panel of names to appoint the country's first anti-corruption ombudsman. The top court had asked the Centre to make available requisite infrastructure, manpower, secretarial assistance and other necessitites to enable the committee, headed by Desai, to commence its work immediately and conclude the search within the timeframe.

Justice Ghose is the most senior member of the National Human Rights Commission, having been a part of it since June 2017. He is a former judge of the Calcutta High Court and former chief justice of the Andhra Pradesh High Court.

The appointment has come through five years after the Lokpal Act was notified for effecting a panel of ombudsmen to look into cases of corruption and maladministration by public servants.