PM Modi, Amit Shah, and Rahul Gandhi Meet to Select New Chief Information Commissioner for RTI Authority

New Delhi:

Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Union Home Minister Amit Shah, and the Leader of the Opposition in Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi are conducting a closed-door meeting to determine the next Chief Information Commissioner. The panel will also decide on appointments for eight vacant Information Commissioner positions at the Central Information Commission (CIC).

The government previously informed the Supreme Court that officials for these top posts would be selected by the PM-led panel today.

Under Section 12(3) of the Right to Information Act, the Prime Minister chairs the selection panel that recommends names for appointment as Chief Information Commissioner and Information Commissioners. The panel includes the Leader of the Opposition and a union minister nominated by the prime minister.

According to the RTI Act, the Chief Information Commissioner and 10 Information Commissioners are responsible for reviewing complaints and appeals filed by RTI applicants who receive unsatisfactory responses from government officials.

The CIC serves as the highest appellate authority for RTI-related complaints and appeals. Currently, it has only two information commissioners, Anandi Ramalingam and Vinod Kumar Tiwari. Eight positions remain vacant, with 30,838 cases pending resolution.

Heeralal Samariya was the previous Chief Information Commissioner, who left office on September 13 after reaching the age of 65. He had been appointed to the CIC on November 6, 2023.

According to an RTI reply to activist Commodore Lokesh Batra (retired), the Department of Personnel and Training received 83 applications for the Chief Information Commissioner position in response to its May 21 advertisement.

The government stated that 161 applications were received for the vacant Information Commissioner positions in the CIC.

How Chief Information Commissioner Is Appointed

The Department of Personnel and Training publishes advertisements in newspapers and on its website to invite applications for the Chief Information Commissioner position. The department compiles these names and forwards them to a search committee chaired by the Cabinet Secretary.

The shortlisted candidates and their applications are then sent to the committee led by the Prime Minister and other members. Once selected, the Chief Information Commissioner is officially appointed by the President.