RTI scene: Activists murder, selection of commissioners et al.

At least 10 RTI activists including environmentalist from Gujarat Amit B Jethwa, who had filed a number of RTI applications regarding illegal activists in Gir, national activists Sunil Shetty from Pune, Shashidhar Mishra from Bihar and Datta Patil from Kolhapur were brutally murdered during the year.

The killings came as a rude shock to the transparency movement in the country leading to demands from activists for framing special provisions in the law for protecting such whistleblowers.

The then Chief Information Commissioner Wajahat Habibullah expressed solidarity with the demands but expressed helplessness in the protection of these activists.

He was of the view that such crimes can be dealt with the existing Indian Penal Code.

The government also said it is not considering to bring any law or amendments to protect these activists and such attacks can be handled with present laws.

Another major development which stirred the hornet's nest was the process of selection of information commissioners across the country.

The tug of war continued as activists demanded transparency in the process and proper rules mentioning eligibility criteria while the government stuck to existing selection procedure.

The year saw three incumbents in the post of Chief Information Commissioner at the Central Information Commission and government preferred only former bureaucrats.

Former IAS officer Wajahat Habibullah retired on September 30 after a successful five-year tenure at the transparency panel. The government appointed Information Commissioner A N Tiwari, a former secretary of Department of Personnel and Training, as his successor even as his remaining tenure was just three months.

After Tiwari's retirement, Information Commissioner Satyananda Mishra, former bureaucrat and former secretary of Department of Personnel and Training, was selected to continue as new Chief Information Commissioner.

Information Commissioner M M Ansari was appointed as an interlocutor for Jammu and Kashmir.

By the end of the year, with no new information commissioners appointed at the CIC, the transparency panel is left with just six commissioners which includes Mishra.