The Lokpal has ruled that complaints against public servants cannot be based on “hearsay”, and must be supported by an affidavit from the complainant, while dismissing a disproportionate assets complaint against former Union minister and ex-Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) legislator Sadhvi Niranjan Jyoti.
Terming the allegations against Jyoti as “unsubstantiated” and “unfounded”, the anticorruption watchdog rejected the complaint in an order passed on January 29.
In its order, a full bench of the Lokpal headed by justice AM Khanwilkar said, “…the allegations levelled by the complainant against Sadhvi Niranjan Jyoti for having acquired disproportionate assets than the known sources of her income during the relevant period is wholly unsubstantiated and is unfounded.”
Coming down heavily on the complainant, the Lokpal observed, “The complainant cannot merely present some material available in the public domain and maintain a complaint without taking the trouble of verifying the same at his/her level in the first place.”
“This is so because the complaint is required to be supported by an affidavit of the complainant who is in the knowledge of the facts of the case, as per the Lokpal (Complaint) Rules, 2020,” it said.
The bench further noted that “it would be unsafe to proceed against public servants on the basis of a complaint filed on hearsay information of the complainant, who does not even want to take the responsibility of the correctness of the allegations made by him on affidavit”.
The complaint against Jyoti, primarily based on her election affidavits for 2014, 2019 and 2024, alleged a meteoric rise in her assets that could not be justified by her known sources of income. Responding to the allegations, the former minister filed an affidavit stating that all income had been transparently declared in her election documents and described the allegations as false and defamatory.
The Lokpal underlined that Jyoti had furnished detailed information regarding her income, assets, increase in the market value of immovable property, bank statements and other supporting documents along with her affidavit.
“As per the affidavit and other documents filed, we find that during the financial years 2014–2019, a total sum of ₹97,73,537 was credited to the parliamentary bank account of Jyoti towards salary and allowances, which are fully verifiable and found to be matching with the bank statements placed on record. Considering the above, the increase of ₹45 lakh disclosed in her 2019 election affidavit is fully justified and well supported by documentary evidence,” the Lokpal said.
The bench further observed that during the period from 2019 to 2024, her income tax returns reflected a taxable income of ₹32.08 lakh, while a total amount of ₹1,24,38,495 was credited as salary and allowances, of which ₹78.50 lakh pertained to non-taxable allowances. In addition, she had sold livestock worth ₹9 lakh during this period.
“Therefore, considering the notional increase in value of immovable properties and the total taxable and non-taxable income and receipts from the sale of livestock, the increase of ₹1.2 crore in the assets is fully explained by Jyoti,” the Lokpal concluded.
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