MIGP PYQs, PYQs Mains Question

Q40. “Recent amendments to the Right to information Act will have profound impact on the autonomy and independence of the Information Commission”. Discuss GS-II: POLITY (UPSC CSE 2020) (150 WORDS,10 MARKS)

Answer:

APPROACH AND STRUCTURE

THE INTRODUCTION: Brief intro about recent RTI amendment Act 2019.

THE BODY

- List the recent amendments.
- Explain how these changes will impact on the autonomy and independence of the Information Commission.

THE CONCLUSION: Conclude with need to protect independence of the institution and strengthening the law.

Table of Contents

THE INTRODUCTION:

The Right to Information (Amendment) Act, 2019, gave the Centre the powers to set the salaries and service conditions of information commissioners at the central and state levels. There are concerns that it will compromise the autonomy and independence of the Information Commissions.

THE BODY:

Provision	RTI Act, 2005	RTI (Amendment) Act, 2019
1. Term	CIC and ICs (at the central and state level) will hold office for a term of five years or until the age of 65 years	The central government will notify the term of office for the CIC and the ICs. It is made now 3 years.
2. Quantum of Salary	The salary of the CIC and ICs (at the central level) will be equivalent to the CEC and ECs, respectively. (Equivalent to the ECs and the Chief Secretary to the state government at the state level. Thus, the salaries, allowances and other terms and conditions of service of the CIC, IC and State CIC are equivalent to a Judge of the Supreme Court.	The salaries, allowances, and other terms and conditions of service of the central and state CIC and ICs will be determined by the central government. (Under the new rules Central information commissioners and state information commissioners have been equated with serving civil servants, who are placed in the same pay grade.)

The government has come up with the amendment to RTI Act in accordance with the Law Commission recommendation that there should be synchronization of all statutory bodies in terms of process of appointments, tenure and service conditions so as to bring uniformity among them.

There are standard criteria even in the Constitution to ensure independence of institutions such as:

- - Clear definition of tenure
  - Stability of tenure
  - Defined service conditions
  - Financial independence

Now through RTI Amendment Act, these criteria are not fixed and will be decided by the central government. Hence, it is being said that amendment will severely dilute the independence of Information Commissions. E.g. it is well established practice that these should be long & secure tenure, remuneration should be charged upon Consolidated fund of India recommended by reforms commissions in the past.

Already Information Commissions are struggling with many problems such as large number of vacancies due to delay in appointments, huge backlog of cases (According to National Campaign for People’s Right to Information report 2019-20, nearly 32,000 appeal cases are pending with Central Information Commission, more than 25% of state information commissioners’ positions lay vacant in 2018), lack of budgetary support.

Despite of such constraints, they have played very instrumental role in last 15 years of their working in promotion of transparency and accountability. E.g. efforts of CIC led to Supreme Court declaring that SC will come under RTI (SC in CPIO Vs Subhash Chandra Agrawal case 2019).

THE CONCLUSION:

Although it is prerogative of the executive to determine how government machinery should be run but at the same time, it should ensure that institutions which uphold accountability remain independent and empowered rather than disempowered.

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