In a bid to ensure transparency, the Narendra Modi government has asked all departments and ministries to put property details of officials on their respective websites.
A government circular in this regard was recently received by the Defence Ministry, which says that the new rules for filing property returns are part of the government’s efforts to implement the Lokayukta Act, 2013.
The Lokayukta Act mandates government officials to file details of all their movable and immovable property assets and the statements should be made public on the website of the respective ministry.
As per the new rules for filing property returns, if any government servant fails to declare his assets or gives misleading details, strict action would be taken against the employee by the competent authority.
It says that if any official is found to be in possession of assets not mentioned in his returns, then it shall be “presumed that the assets belong to the public servant and acquired by corrupt means”.
“The Government has also asked the Ministries to make sure that these statements are posted on the websites of respective ministries within the specified time frame.
The Government has also asked the ministries to ensure that the officials file their property details including the assets of their family members and dependents.