The Supreme Court on Monday took critical observe of vacancies in the Central Information Commission (CIC) in addition to State Information Commissions (SICs) and requested the Centre and state governments to make efforts to fill the posts, warning that the Right to Information (RTI) Act, 2005 will become ‘a useless letter’.
A bench comprising Chief Justice D Y Chandrachud and Justices J B Pardiwala and Manoj Misra requested the Department of Personnel and Training (DoPT) to gather info from all states on elements together with the sanctioned power of knowledge commissioners in the SICs, vacancies at current and the full variety of pending circumstances there.
“The Right to Information Act of 2005 will become a dead letter,” stated CJI Chandrachud. The submissions had been filed by senior lawyer Prashant Bhushan, who appeared for RTI activist Anjali Bhardwaj and stated that the SICs had become defunct due to the absence of serving info commissioners.
The three-judge bench noticed that the big variety of vacancies would defeat “the underlying spirit and express orders” of the courtroom. They additionally identified that solely 4 info commissioners are working on the CIC with seven vacant positions.
SC’s judgement on well timed filling up of vacancies
The SC bench additionally directed the DoPT to collate info from all states and file a standing report, together with on the facet of steps being taken to fill the vacancies in SICs. It additionally requested Additional Solicitor General Aishwarya Bhati to help the bench in coping with the matter and requested the checklist to be supplied after three weeks.
The Supreme Court had directed the Centre and state governments in December 2019 to appoint info commissioners inside three months on the CIC and SICs, observing there was a necessity to evolve tips to cease misuse of the Right to Information Act.
It additional ordered the involved authorities to put the names of the members of the search committee, which was meant for the collection of info commissioners on the CIC, on their web site. The matter was addressed after the same submission by Bhushan, who stated that the Centre and totally different states had not complied with the apex courtroom’s judgement on February 15, 2019, to appoint info commissioners in the CIC and SICs inside 1-6 months.
“We direct the Centre and the states to conclude the appointment within three months,” the bench had stated, cautioning the authorities {that a} contempt petition could also be filed if its order just isn’t complied with. It had additionally highlighted the significance of the train being carried out in a clear method.
On Monday, Bhushan highlighted the seven vacancies in the CIC and the absence of a Central Information Commissioner, additional saying that the 4 serving Information Commissioners (ICs) will demit workplace in the approaching months.
Bhardwaj, in her software, claimed the Centre and states haven’t adopted the apex courtroom’s 2019 judgement on points together with well timed filling up of vacancies on the CIC and SICs.
(with PTI inputs)
