India's information commissions "riddled" with up to 10 years delay in hearing RTI pleas, Delhi public hearing told

By A Representative
Even as releasing its new report highlighting concerns regarding the performance of information commissions in India, including the Central Information Commission (CIC), a public hearing in Delhi organized by advocacy groups, Satark Nagrik Sangathan and National Campaign for People's Right to Information, has confirmed its key findings -- delays, skewed composition of information commissioners, vacancies, lack of penalty imposition and transparency in their functioning.
The report, ‘Report Card of Information Commissions in India’, was released in the presence of RK Mathur, India's chief information commissioner and Haryana information commissioners, and right to information (RTI) users and activists from 14 states -- Gujarat, Andhra Pradesh, Manipur, West Bengal, Himachal Pradesh, Karnataka, Jharkhand, Rajasthan, Delhi, Jammu & Kashmir, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Kerala and Bihar.
The hearing was told, while people have understood the value of the RTI Act and are using it vibrantly for a variety of issues -- from demanding accountability in basic entitlements to questioning the highest officers -- the functioning of information commissions is a major bottleneck in the effective implementation of the RTI law.

RK Mathur

Chakradhar, an RTI activist from Andhra Pradesh, testified that the state has no functional state information commission for the past 11 months. After the bifurcation of Andhra Pradesh in 2014, the state information commission (SIC) of Andhra Pradesh continued to function as the information commission for both Telangana and Andhra Pradesh. However, SIC became defunct in May 2017 when the serving commissioners retired. No new commissioners have been appointed.
Abey George from Kerala highlighted that the SIC is functioning with only one commissioner even though nearly 14,000 appeals/complaints are pending with the commission and it takes several years for a matter to come up for disposal.
Reena testified that despite passage of more than 16 months since she had filed a second appeal with CIC, the matter has yet to come up for hearing. A single mother from Dakshinpuri, Delhi, she applied for scheduled caste (SC) certificates for her children but was told by the revenue department that she needed to produce the caste certificate of the father of her children as a mother’s caste certificate would not suffice.

Reena filed an RTI request in June 2016 seeking information about the documents required for applying for a caste certificate for her children and the procedure to be followed in case a single mother is not in possession of father’s caste certificate. She filed a second appeal with CIC on November 30, 2016. However, till date her matter has not been taken up by CIC.

Amitava Chowdhury from West Bengal said, he filed an application under the RTI Act on March 28, 2008 seeking information on the names and designations of persons connected with appointment-related activities of the West Bengal College Service Commission. However, no information was provided. Hence, he filed a complaint before SIC on February 25, 2009. The complaint was finally heard on March 7, 2018 -- more than nine years after it was filed!
Kusumlata, a resident of Moti Lal Nehru slum in Delhi, said, she filed an RTI application seeking information on her pension which was suddenly denied, without informing her. She was provided incomplete information, which was also confirmed by the first appellate authority. Despite non-compliance with the orders of the first appellate authority, CIC refused to impose penalty.
Shankar, a resident of Lal Gumbad, sought certified copy of his application for SC certificate and copy of verification report of his certificate from the revenue department though RTI on July 28, 2015. No reply was received. Therefore, he filed first appeal on September 8, 2015. During the hearing on October 13, 2015, a direction was issued to provide information within seven days. As there was no compliance, he approached CIC. While CIC issued a show case notice, till date there is no follow-up.

Comments

Uma said…

In the early days, when Shailesh Gandhi was in charge, two queries raised by me resulted in action in a week's time. After he resigned, I haven't had occasion to raise any queries but I have been reading the "horror" stories in the papers and on the 'net. No government in India will ever bring about change in the sorry state the best act is in today

April 29, 2018

Anonymous said…

Very soon CIC and SICs would become like SC and HCs.... with pendency running into lacs of cases.....

April 29, 2018

US-China truce temporary, larger trade war between two economies to continue

By Prabir Purkayastha The Trump-Xi meeting in Busan, South Korea on 30 October 2025 may have brought about a temporary relief in the US-China trade war. But unless we see the fine print of the agreement, it is difficult to assess whether this is a temporary truce or the beginning of a real rapprochement between the two nations. The jury is still out on that one and we will wait for a better understanding of what has really been achieved in Busan.

When growth shrinks people: Capitalism and the biological decline of the U.S. population

By Bhabani Shankar Nayak* Critically acclaimed Hungarian-American economic historian and distinguished scholar of economic anthropometric history, Prof. John Komlos (Professor Emeritus, University of Munich), who pioneered the study of the history of human height and weight, has published an article titled “The Decline in the Physical Stature of the U.S. Population Parallels the Diminution in the Rate of Increase in Life Expectancy” on October 31, 2025, in the forthcoming issue of Social Science & Medicine (SSM) – Population Health, Volume 32, December 2025. The findings of the article present a damning critique of the barbaric nature of capitalism and its detrimental impact on human health, highlighting that the average height of Americans began to decline during the era of free-market capitalism. The study draws on an analysis of 17 surveys from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES), conducted by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (...

Is vaccine the Voldemort of modern medicine to be left undiscussed, unscrutinised?

By Deepika* Sridhar Vembu of Zoho stirred up an internet storm by tweeting about the possible link of autism to the growing number of vaccines given to children in India . He had only asked the parents to analyse the connection but doctors, so called public health experts vehemently started opposing Vembu's claims, labeling them "dangerous misinformation" that could erode “vaccine trust”!

Justice for Zubeen Garg: Fans persist as investigations continue in India and Singapore

By Nava Thakuria* Even a month after the death of Assam’s cultural icon Zubeen Garg in Singapore under mysterious circumstances, thousands of his fans and admirers across eastern India continue their campaign for “ JusticeForZubeenGarg .” A large digital campaign has gained momentum, with over two million social media users from around the world demanding legal action against those allegedly responsible. Although the Assam government has set up a Special Investigation Team (SIT), which has arrested seven people, and a judicial commission headed by Justice Soumitra Saikia of the Gauhati High Court to oversee the probe, public pressure for justice remains strong.

Govt claims about 'revolutionary' rice varieties raise eyebrows: SC order reserved since Jan '24

By Rosamma Thomas * In a matter of grave importance for agriculture, public health awaits Supreme Court ruling, even as top Government of India bureaucrats stand accused of “willful and deliberate disobedience” of the top court. While a contempt petition filed by Aruna Rodrigues , lead petitioner in the Genetic Modification (GM) of crops matter remains pending in the Supreme Court since July 2025, the Union ministry of agriculture asserts that two home-grown gene edited rice varieties are of superior quality, and hold potential for “revolutionary changes in higher production, climate adaptability, and water conservation.” In May 2025, the Press Information Bureau released a press release stating that a “historic milestone” had been reached, under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi ; the new varieties, DRR Rice 100 (Kamla) and Pusa DST Rice 1 , the press release stated, offer both benefits – increased production and environmental conservation.

Gujarat civil society to move Supreme Court against controversial electoral roll revision

By Rajiv Shah A recent, well-attended meeting of Gujarat civil society activists in Ahmedabad , held to discuss the impact of the ongoing Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls, has decided to file a petition in the Supreme Court against the controversial exercise initiated by the Election Commission of India (ECI) across the country. Announcing this, senior High Court advocate Anand Yagnik , who heads the Gujarat chapter of the People’s Union for Civil Liberties (PUCL), said that a committee has already been formed to examine the pros and cons of SIR. “While the SIR exercise began in Gujarat on November 4 and is scheduled to continue for a month, we will file a supporting petition in the case against SIR in the Gujarat High Court or the Supreme Court after observing how it proceeds in the state,” he said. Yagnik’s announcement followed senior advocate Shahrukh Alam —who is arguing the SIR case in the Supreme Court—urging Gujarat’s civil society to also file ...

Banks, investors pour $52 billion into metallurgical coal expansion despite global climate pledges

By A Representative A new report by the German environmental and human rights NGO Urgewald has revealed that banks and institutional investors have poured nearly $52 billion into the expansion of metallurgical coal, or “met coal,” despite global commitments to phase out coal financing. Between 2022 and 2024, banks provided $21.96 billion in loans and underwriting to met coal developers, while investors held $30.23 billion in securities of companies expanding coal mining operations. The report, Still Burning: How Banks and Investors Fuel Met Coal Expansion, warns that loopholes in coal exit policies have allowed continued support for coal used in steelmaking — a sector responsible for about 11% of global CO₂ emissions.

Buddhist shrines were 'massively destroyed' by Brahmanical rulers: Historian DN Jha

Nalanda mahavihara By Rajiv Shah Prominent historian DN Jha, an expert in India's ancient and medieval past, in his new book , "Against the Grain: Notes on Identity, Intolerance and History", in a sharp critique of "Hindutva ideologues", who look at the ancient period of Indian history as "a golden age marked by social harmony, devoid of any religious violence", has said, "Demolition and desecration of rival religious establishments, and the appropriation of their idols, was not uncommon in India before the advent of Islam".

Trump escalates threats of war against Venezuela, as millions in US set to lose essential benefits

By Manolo De Los Santos The United States government is in the grips of one of its longest-running funding gaps in history. The ongoing government shutdown has already stretched beyond 30 days and now, the food security of millions of Americans is at risk as the funding to the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) is drying up and Trump officials have refused to tap into contingency funds . Approximately 42 million individuals per month rely on SNAP benefits and are set to lose them beginning on November 1.

Search This Blog