Bhubaneswar: Odisha State Information Commission (SIC) is functioning with only two commissioners despite having a large pendency of more than 20,000 appeals and complaints.
An assessment made by New Delhi-based citizens’ group Satark Nagrik Sangathan (SNS) reveals that the estimated waiting time for an appeal/complaint to be disposed by the Odisha SIC is 3 years and 11 months. The Chief Information Commissioner of Odisha SIC demitted office on October 4, 2024 and the post is lying vacant. The report has compiled data of 29 information commissions nationwide as of June 30, 2024.
Of the 29 commissions, seven were found to be non-functional for varying lengths of time with all posts of commissioners being vacant. As of October 10, 2024, four commissions – Jharkhand, Tripura, Telangana and Goa -were completely defunct. In the absence of functional commissions, information seekers have no reprieve under the RTI Act if they are unable to access information as per the provisions of the law.
Five commissions including Odisha were functioning without a chief information commissioner. The absence of a chief information commissioner has serious ramifications for the effective functioning of the commission since the RTI Act envisages a critical role for the Chief, including superintendence, management and direction of the affairs of the information commission.
NON-FUNCTIONAL INFO PANELS
Jharkhand: The Chief Information Commissioner of the Jharkhand SIC, demitted office in November 2019. Subsequently the lone information commissioner was also made the acting Chief, although no such explicit provision exists under the RTI Act. However, upon the completion of the tenure of the commissioner on May 8, 2020, the information commission has been without any commissioner, rendering it completely defunct. For more than 4 years, people seeking information from public authorities under the jurisdiction of the Jharkhand SIC have had no recourse to the independent appellate mechanism prescribed under the RTI Act if their right to information is violated.
Tripura: The information commission of Tripura became defunct on July 13, 2021 when the sole commissioner, who was the Chief, completed his tenure. The SIC has been defunct for more than 3 years. Since April 2019, this is the third time the commission has become defunct. It was defunct from April 2019 to September 2019, then from April 2020 to July 2020 and now again since July 13, 2021.
Telangana: The information commission of Telangana became defunct on February 24, 2023 when all five information commissioners finished their tenure. It has been defunct for the last 19 months. After the creation of the state in 2014 through bifurcation of Andhra Pradesh, the Telangana State Information Commission was constituted only in 2017 upon the orders of the High Court. The post of the Chief has been vacant since August 24, 2020. Goa: The information commission of Goa became defunct on March 1, 2024 when the Chief and an information commissioner retired, having completed their tenure of 3 years. The commission has been defunct for the last 7 months.
Madhya Pradesh: The information commission of Madhya Pradesh became defunct on March 28, 2024 and remained non-functional for nearly 6 months, till September 17, 2024 when 4 new commissioners, including the Chief, were appointed.
Uttar Pradesh: The SIC of UP became defunct on February 25, 2024 when all 6 incumbent commissioners demitted office upon completion of their tenure. The commission remained non-functional for 16 days till the new chief and information commissioners took charge from March 13, 2024.
Chhattisgarh: The SIC of Chhattisgarh was defunct for a period of 5 days in the month of March 2024.