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CIC official slams Bill to change RTI
Why it is in news?
- A voice of dissent has emerged from within the Central Information Commission (CIC) against the proposed changes in the RTI Act.
- RTI Act which many argue would “weaken” information commissions, with a Commissioner urging the panel to write to the government for withdrawing the controversial amendment Bill.
- The PTI has a copy of the letter that says the proposed Bill intends to defeat the very purpose of the RTI Act 2005, besides being an affront to federalism enshrined as a basic feature of the Constitution.
- A call on his demand is yet to be taken by the Commissioners.
Proposed Amendment
- The Right to Information (Amendment) Bill, 2018 circulated among the Members of Parliament seeks to remove the statutory safeguards in place to ensure the independence of information commissioners at the Centre and in the states.
- Currently, the salaries and tenures of information commissioners, both at the Centre and in the states, are statutorily protected and at par with those of the Chief Election Commissioner and Election Commissioners at the Centre and also the election commissioners in the states.
- The Bill states that the salaries and tenures of the information commissioners at the Centre and in the states will be controlled by the Union government.
- It states that the mandate and functions of the Central and State Information Commissions are totally different to that of the Election Commission.
- Hence, their status and service conditions need to be rationalized accordingly.
- According to the objectives of the amendment Bill, “the salaries, allowances and other terms and conditions of service of the Chief Information Commissioner and the Information Commissioners and the State Chief Information Commissioner and the State Information Commissioners shall be such as may be prescribed by the Central Government”.
- It also states that the information commissioners, both at the Centre and in states that shall hold office for such term as may be prescribed by the Central government instead of five years.
- It seeks to completely destroy the autonomy of the information commissioners by allowing the central government to decide tenure and salaries of central and state information commissioners, which are currently statutorily protected,
- The Congress, Left parties and other opposition parties say they will oppose the Bill.
Source
The Hindu