Retired High Court chief justice Bollampally Subhashan Reddy was appointed the Lokayukta by the state government on Wednesday.
Reddy will call on governor ESL Narasimhan at the Raj Bhavan on Thursday and take the oath of office on Friday. He will hold the office for a tenure of five years.
A law graduate from the Osmania University, Subhashan Reddy served as a judge of the Andhra Pradesh High Court and chief justice of the Kerala and Madras High Courts. He also served as chairman of the AP State Human Rights Commission.
Profile
Born on March 2, 1943, he did his initial schooling at Sultan Bazar and Chaderghat schools in Hyderabad. A science graduate, Subhashan Reddy studied law at Osmania University and enrolled as an advocate on January 10, 1966.
He was elevated as a judge of the AP High Court on November 25, 1991. He served as chief justice of the Madras High Court from September 11, 2001 to November 20, 2004, and of the Kerla High Court from November 21, 2004 to March 2, 2005, and as chairman of Andhra Pradesh SHRC from August 12, 2005 to August 12, 2010.
Apart from professional expertise, Reddy has keen interest in sports and had played football and hockey in his student days. He is also interested in music, and ancient and modern literature. He likes the poetry of Sri Sri in particular.
Though Justice B.Subhashan Reddy, the newly-appointed Lokayukta, was busy on Wednesday receiving a string of visitors to his Hyderguda residence and continuous congratulatory phone calls from friends and well-wishers, he had a brief chat with the Express and spoke about his appointment. Here are excerpts:
Q) How strictly are you going to implement the rules of Lokayukta?
A) I will act according to the Act. The Act was made according to a legislation and I will be implementing it. It is too early for me to comment. But I am a person of action.
Q) So, are you going to be the Santosh Hegde (Karnataka Lokayukta) of AP?
A) Don’t compare me (with others). I don’t know the Act there. It (Lokayukta) is a state Act. It may differ from one state to another. I am appointed under statute and I my action will be within the periphery of the Act. I can’t exceed it.
Q) With allegations of corruption heard everywhere, will you prefer suo motu action?
A) I am yet to study the Act. In SHRC, cases can be taken up on reference by a court or by the National Human Rights Commission. In the case of Lokayukta, I have to study the rules when I assume office.
Q) What is your goal as Lokayukta?
A) To do justice to the post. I am appointed by the governor. I have to do full justice to their confidence.