The Forum for Good Governance has urged Chief Secretary A. Santhi Kumari to take steps for appointment of 10 information commissioners headed by Chief Information Commissioner.
The Chief Information Commissioner of Telangana demitted office about two years ago and no CIC was appointed in his place, Subsequently, all the five information commissioners demitted office on February 24 this year and the commission is defunct ever since. Though the Commission’s secretary addressed a letter to the government in this regard, there was no response on the issue so far, FGG secretary M. Padmanabha Reddy said in a letter addressed to the Chief Secretary.
There were 9,244 appeals pending before the commission with 650 appeals received on an average every month. The Government was not putting the important Government Orders in its website with the result that people were kept in the dark about the functioning of the Government. Lack of transparency was encouraging nepotism and corruption and this could be controlled in a way through effective functioning of the information commission.
He said according to sub-section 3 of the Section 15 of RTI Act, the CIC and the information commissioners should be appointed by the Governor on the recommendation of a committee consisting of Chief Minister as chairman and leader of the opposition and a Minister nominated by the Chief Minister as members. Accordingly, he requested the Chief Secretary to take steps to appoint a search committee to prepare select list of candidates based on the qualifications fixed in the Act and place it before the selection committee. “In view of the heavy pendency, 10 information commissioners with one Chief Information Commissioner may be appointed,” Mr. Padmanabha Reddy said.
