Skip to main content

Govt of India "undermines" transparency in appointing information commissioners

Mallikakarjun Kharge, Modi
Counterview Desk
Several concerned citizens write to the Selection Committee responsible for recommending names of Central Information Commissioners (CICs), expressing strong reservations about the process followed by the government for inviting applications and short-listing candidates for the posts of information commissioners in the CIC.
Addressed to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who is chairperson of the selection committee and to Mallikarjun Kharge, Congress leader in the Lok Sabha and a member of the selection committee, the letter states that the advertisements, and the accompanying notifications issued by the government inviting applications for vacant posts in CIC, were not in keeping with the Right to Information (RTI) Act, as they did not specify the salaries, allowances and other conditions of service and tenure of information commissioners as provided for in the law.
The letter adds, the tenure and salaries of information commissioners not being defined in the advertisements issued by the government would have dissuaded many people of eminence from applying, thereby compromising the appointment procedure.
The letter further says that the procedure of short-listing candidates has been shrouded in secrecy with even basic information about applications received in response to the advertisements and details about the functioning of the search committee, being denied under the RTI Act, urging the committee to ensure that the advertisement is suitably rectified and re-issued with immediate effect.
Currently, eight out of 11 posts of information commissioners, including that of the Chief Information Commissioner, are lying vacant in CIC.

Text of the letter:

According to media reports, the committee to select information commissioners is scheduled to meet on December 11, 2018, to decide names for posts of four information commissioners and the chief information commissioner of the Central Information Commission.
We are writing to express our strong reservations about the process of inviting applications and short listing candidates followed by the government, which we believe has compromised the appointment procedure.
The government issued an advertisement inviting applications for the post of 4 information commissioners on July 26, 2018. Another advertisement, dated October 23, 2018, was issued for the post of the chief information commissioner. Both advertisements, and the accompanying notifications, were not in keeping with the RTI Act as they did not specify the salaries, allowances and other conditions of service and tenure of information commissioners as provided for in the law. 
The notifications stated that the salary, allowances and other terms and conditions of service “shall be as may be specified at the time of appointment of the selected candidate/s”. This is at variance with the provisions of the RTI Act. 
The law states that the Chief Information Commissioner and information commissioners shall be persons of eminence in public life. Sections 13(2) and 13(5) specify that the salaries, allowances and other terms of service of the chief and other information commissioners of the Central Information Commission, shall be the same as that of the Chief Election Commissioner and election commissioners, respectively. The chief and other election commissioners are paid a salary equal to the salary of a judge of the Supreme Court, which is decided by Parliament. Further, the RTI Act provides for a fixed tenure of 5 years for information commissioners, subject to a retirement age of 65 years. It is pertinent to note that previous notifications of vacancies specified the salary, terms of service and tenure of commissioners as per the provisions of the RTI Act.
The tenure and salaries of information commissioners not being defined in the advertisements issued by the government, would have dissuaded many people of eminence from applying. As a result, the selection committee will not have the benefit on selecting from a comprehensive pool of candidates.
It is, therefore, crucial that the government suitably rectify and re-issue the advertisement for the posts. This must be done with immediate effect, since eight out of eleven posts of information commissioners in the Central Information Commission are lying vacant.
Further, the procedure of short-listing candidates has been shrouded in secrecy. Information sought under the RTI Act, about applications received in response to the advertisements issued for the position of information commissioners and details about the functioning of the search committee, was illegally denied by the Department of Personnel & Training, which stated: 
“The matter regarding appointment of Information Commissioners, Central Information Commission is under consideration and has not reached finality. As per section 8(1) (i) of the RTI Act, 2005, information requested by you cannot be supplied at this stage”.
Lack of transparency in the appointment process of information commissioners in the CIC would erode public trust in the institution, which plays a pivotal role in the implementation of the RTI Act.
We, therefore, urge you to ensure that all vacancies in the Central Information Commission are filled in a transparent, time-bound manner as per the provisions of the RTI Act.
---
*Anjali Bhardwaj, Aruna Roy, Wajahat Habibullah, Shekhar Singh, Shailesh Gandhi, Nikhil Dey, Rakesh Reddy Dubbudu, Venkatesh Nayak, Dr Shaikh Ghulam Rasool, Pankti Jog, Pradip Pradhan, Commodore Lokesh K Batra (Retd), Amrita Johri

Comments

Post a Comment

TRENDING

From plagiarism to proxy exams: Galgotias and systemic failure in education

By Sandeep Pandey*   Shock is being expressed at Galgotias University being found presenting a Chinese-made robotic dog and a South Korean-made soccer-playing drone as its own creations at the recently held India AI Impact Summit 2026, a global event in New Delhi. Earlier, a UGC-listed journal had published a paper from the university titled “Corona Virus Killed by Sound Vibrations Produced by Thali or Ghanti: A Potential Hypothesis,” which became the subject of widespread ridicule. Following the robotic dog controversy coming to light, the university has withdrawn the paper. These incidents are symptoms of deeper problems afflicting the Indian education system in general. Galgotias merely bit off more than it could chew.
5 comments
»

Covishield controversy: How India ignored a warning voice during the pandemic

Dr Amitav Banerjee, MD *  It is a matter of pride for us that a person of Indian origin, presently Director of National Institute of Health, USA, is poised to take over one of the most powerful roles in public health. Professor Jay Bhattacharya, an Indian origin physician and a health economist, from Stanford University, USA, will be assuming the appointment of acting head of the Centre for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), USA. Bhattacharya would be leading two apex institutions in the field of public health which not only shape American health policies but act as bellwether globally.
Post a Comment
»

The 'glass cliff' at Galgotias: How a university’s AI crisis became a gendered blame game

By Mohd. Ziyaullah Khan*  “She was not aware of the technical origins of the product and in her enthusiasm of being on camera, gave factually incorrect information.” These were the words used in the official press release by Galgotias University following the controversy at the AI Impact Summit in Delhi. The statement came across as defensive, petty, and deeply insensitive.
3 comments
»

Farewell to Saleem Samad: A life devoted to fearless journalism

By Nava Thakuria*  Heartbreaking news arrived from Dhaka as the vibrant city lost one of its most active and committed citizens with the passing of journalist, author and progressive Bangladeshi national Saleem Samad. A gentleman who always had issues to discuss with anyone, anywhere and at any time, he passed away on 22 February 2026 while undergoing cancer treatment at Dhaka Medical College Hospital. He was 74. 
Post a Comment
»

Growth without justice: The politics of wealth and the economics of hunger

By Vikas Meshram*  In modern history, few periods have displayed such a grotesque and contradictory picture of wealth as the present. On one side, a handful of individuals accumulate in a single year more wealth than the annual income of entire nations. On the other, nearly every fourth person in the world goes to bed hungry or half-fed.
Post a Comment
»

From ancient wisdom to modern nationhood: The Indian story

By Syed Osman Sher  South of the Himalayas lies a triangular stretch of land, spreading about 2,000 miles in each direction—a world of rare magic. It has fired the imagination of wanderers, settlers, raiders, traders, conquerors, and colonizers. They entered this country bringing with them new ethnicities, cultures, customs, religions, and languages.
Post a Comment
»

Thali, COVID and academic credibility: All about the 2020 'pseudoscientific' Galgotias paper

By Jag Jivan*    The first page image of the paper "Corona Virus Killed by Sound Vibrations Produced by Thali or Ghanti: A Potential Hypothesis" published in the Journal of Molecular Pharmaceuticals and Regulatory Affairs , Vol. 2, Issue 2 (2020), has gone viral on social media in the wake of the controversy surrounding a Chinese robot presented by the Galgotias University as its original product at the just-concluded AI summit in Delhi . The resurfacing of the 2020 publication, authored by  Dharmendra Kumar , Galgotias University, has reignited debate over academic standards and scientific credibility.
1 comment
»

Conversion laws and national identity: A Jesuit response response to the Hindutva narrative

By Rajiv Shah  A recent book, " Luminous Footprints: The Christian Impact on India ", authored by two Jesuit scholars, Dr. Lancy Lobo and Dr. Denzil Fernandes , seeks to counter the current dominant narrative on Indian Christians , which equates evangelisation with conversion, and education, health and the social services provided by Christians as meant to lure -- even force -- vulnerable sections into Christianity.
2 comments
»

Unpaid overtime, broken promises: Indian Oil workers strike in Panipat

By Rosamma Thomas  Thousands of workers at the Indian Oil Corporation refinery in Panipat, Haryana, went on strike beginning February 23, 2026. They faced a police lathi charge, and the Central Industrial Security Force fired into the air to control the crowd.
Post a Comment
»