<P> A Lokpal (Sanskrit: लोकपाल lokapāla, "caretaker of people") is an anti-corruption authority or ombudsman who represents the public interest . The concept of an ombudsman is borrowed from Sweden . The Lokpal has jurisdiction over all Members of Parliament and central government employees in cases of corruption . The Lokpal and Lokayuktas Act was passed in 2013 with amendments in parliament, following the Jan Lokpal movement led by Anna Hazare . The Lokpal is responsible for enquiring into corruption charges at the national level while the Lokayukta performs the same function at the state level . </P> <P> The term "Lokpal" was coined by Dr. L.M. Singhvi in 1963 . The concept of a constitutional ombudsman was first proposed in parliament by Law Minister Ashoke Kumar Sen in the early 1960s . The first Jan Lokpal Bill was proposed by Shanti Bhushan in 1968 and passed in the 4th Lok Sabha in 1969, but did not pass through the Rajya Sabha . Subsequently,' lokpal bills' were introduced in 1971, 1977, 1985, again by Ashoke Kumar Sen, while serving as Law Minister in the Rajiv Gandhi cabinet, and again in 1989, 1996, 1998, 2001, 2005 and in 2008, yet they were never passed . Forty five years after its first introduction, the Lokpal Bill is finally enacted in India on 18 December 2013 . </P> <P> The Lokpal Bill provides for the filing, with the ombudsman, of complaints of corruption against the prime minister, other ministers, and MPs . The Administrative Reforms Commission (ARC) recommended the enacting of the Office of a Lokpal, convinced that such an institution was justified, not only for removing the sense of injustice from the minds of citizens, but also to instill public confidence in the efficiency of the administrative machinery . </P> <P> Following this, the Lokpal Bill was, for the first time, presented during the fourth Lok Sabha in 1968, and was passed there in 1969 . However, while it was pending in the Rajya Sabha, the Lok Sabha was dissolved, and thus the bill was not passed . </P>

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