by Harish Gupta, National Editor, Lokmat Group
Vacancies galore at CIC, Govt. Apathy for RTI visible,
Harish Gupta
New Delhi, Nov 18
With the exit of four Information Commissioners including the Chief Information Commissioner, country's RTI watch-dog will virtually become defunct.
The 11-member body was already down to seven as the government chose not to fill vacancies for some strange reasons. Now the CIC R K Mathur is retiring on November 24, Yashovardhan Azad and M Sridhar Acharyulu completing their five year term on November 21 and Amitava Bhattacharya demiting office on December 1.
This will leave the body with only three members; namely Sudhir Bhargawa, Bimal Julka and D P Sinha.
The Information Commissioners including the CIC are chosen by a committee of three members comprising of Prime Minister, Leader of the Opposition or the single largest party in the Opposition and a Cabinet Minister chosen by the PM. No meeting of the committee has been scheduled as Assembly polls are underway in five states.
This was despite the fact that the government had assured the supreme court in July this year that it would take immediate steps to fill the vacancies of the ICs. In order to mollify the SC, the government hurriedly issued the advertisement in newspapers inviting applications. But neither there was a mention of how many vacancies exist and what would be the terms & conditions of the ICs.
It is no secret that the Modi government has not been very enthusiastic towards strengthening the Right to Information Act (RTI). Rather, it is diluting the powers of the Commission by amending the RTI Act itself. It doesn't want CIC members to have the rank of the Minister of State and perks and salaries higher than that of Cabinet Secretary. In fact, the advertisement in the newspapers seeking applications for the post was silent on its terms of service and pay & emoluments.
There is a strong possibility that amendments moved by the government during the monsoon session of parliament may not be carried as there is hardly any time left to pass such amendments in s short session. ' in the Rajya Sabha for consideration and passage during the current session of Parliament, Minister of State for Personnel Jitendra Singh said in a written reply to Lok Sabha.
According to the proposed amendment of the Right to Information (Amendment) Bill, 2018' the salaries, allowances and other terms and conditions of service of the CIC and ICs "shall be such as may be prescribed by the central government". The tenure of information commissioners at the centre and the states is proposed to be amended from "a term of five years" to "terms as may be prescribed by the central government".
Many RTI activists have strongly opposed amendments to the RTI Act saying they are aimed at lowering the stature of Information Commissions from equivalent to the Election Commission (EC) and to do away with their five years fixed tenure.
The argument is that the EC is a constitutional body established by clause (1) of Article 324 of the Constitution, while the CIC and state information commissions are statutory bodies established under the provisions of the RTI Act, 2005, it said.
Ends
Vacancies galore at CIC, Govt. Apathy for RTI visible,
Harish Gupta
New Delhi, Nov 18
With the exit of four Information Commissioners including the Chief Information Commissioner, country's RTI watch-dog will virtually become defunct.
The 11-member body was already down to seven as the government chose not to fill vacancies for some strange reasons. Now the CIC R K Mathur is retiring on November 24, Yashovardhan Azad and M Sridhar Acharyulu completing their five year term on November 21 and Amitava Bhattacharya demiting office on December 1.
This will leave the body with only three members; namely Sudhir Bhargawa, Bimal Julka and D P Sinha.
The Information Commissioners including the CIC are chosen by a committee of three members comprising of Prime Minister, Leader of the Opposition or the single largest party in the Opposition and a Cabinet Minister chosen by the PM. No meeting of the committee has been scheduled as Assembly polls are underway in five states.
This was despite the fact that the government had assured the supreme court in July this year that it would take immediate steps to fill the vacancies of the ICs. In order to mollify the SC, the government hurriedly issued the advertisement in newspapers inviting applications. But neither there was a mention of how many vacancies exist and what would be the terms & conditions of the ICs.
It is no secret that the Modi government has not been very enthusiastic towards strengthening the Right to Information Act (RTI). Rather, it is diluting the powers of the Commission by amending the RTI Act itself. It doesn't want CIC members to have the rank of the Minister of State and perks and salaries higher than that of Cabinet Secretary. In fact, the advertisement in the newspapers seeking applications for the post was silent on its terms of service and pay & emoluments.
There is a strong possibility that amendments moved by the government during the monsoon session of parliament may not be carried as there is hardly any time left to pass such amendments in s short session. ' in the Rajya Sabha for consideration and passage during the current session of Parliament, Minister of State for Personnel Jitendra Singh said in a written reply to Lok Sabha.
According to the proposed amendment of the Right to Information (Amendment) Bill, 2018' the salaries, allowances and other terms and conditions of service of the CIC and ICs "shall be such as may be prescribed by the central government". The tenure of information commissioners at the centre and the states is proposed to be amended from "a term of five years" to "terms as may be prescribed by the central government".
Many RTI activists have strongly opposed amendments to the RTI Act saying they are aimed at lowering the stature of Information Commissions from equivalent to the Election Commission (EC) and to do away with their five years fixed tenure.
The argument is that the EC is a constitutional body established by clause (1) of Article 324 of the Constitution, while the CIC and state information commissions are statutory bodies established under the provisions of the RTI Act, 2005, it said.
Ends
