Patna HC directs the state government to fill up the posts of the information commissioner
6 Oct, 2013A division bench comprising of Justice Navin Sinha and Justice Vikash Jain of the Patna high court has directed the state government to fill up the posts of the information commissioners in the State Information Commission (SIC) which have been lying vacant. The bench was hearing a petition filed by the Nagrik Adhikar Manch wherein it was pleaded that out of the four posts of state information commissioners, only one was functional and the delay in appointment was leading to shielding of corrupt officers. There are more than 22,000 appeal and complaint cases pending with the SIC.
In the counter affidavit, the state government counsel Lalit Kishore informed the court that steps had been taken to fill up the posts of commissioners. The division bench observed, “The purpose of the (RTI) Act is to provide speedy information to the public to promote transparency and accountability by public authorities. The state is expected to act expeditiously by filling up vacancies, so that cases do not linger for lack of adequate authorities to hear them”.
In many states, activists have taken up the case with the high court to fill the vacancy of the information commissioner. This site has reported “Would the MP Information Commission be operational before the state elections”? Link - http://www.rtifoundationofindia.com/would-mp-information-commission-be-operational-sta