Greater
Kashmir: Srinagar: Thursday, June 27, 2019.
The
State Information Commission and Women’s Commission continue to be headless for
the past one year.
The
Governor administration last year amended the right to information Act-2009 and
paved way for the appointment of its head and members during the governor’s or
president’s rule. Similarly, a new legislation was framed and called as State
commission for women and child rights Act. As per the Act the commission will
consist of five members including the chairperson who will be nominated by the
government from amongst the eminent persons who have done outstanding work for
protection of women and children.
But
despite amendments in the Acts, the commissions continue to function without
heads, causing anxiety among the people.
Days
after the collapse of the PDP-BJP coalition government in June last year, heads
of the Commission for Women and State Information Commission stepped down
upholding established conventions.
While
Nayeema Mehjoor stepped down from the women commission as a result of the
demise of the state government, chief of the Information Commission, Khurshid
Ahmad Ganai, who was not a political appointee, resigned on June 29 before
being appointed advisor to the Governor.
A
year has passed but the Governor’s administration has not found replacement for
the two important posts yet, leaving the statutory institutions without any
commissioners.
The
women and child rights commission has powers to investigate, examine and review
all matters relating to the safeguards provided for women and children rights
under the constitution and any laws for the time being in force for their
protection and recommend measures for their effective implementation.
The
commission, as per the Act, shall have power to inquire into the complaints and
take suo-moto notice of matters relating to deprivation and violation of women
and child rights, non-implementation of laws enacted to provide protection of
women and children and also achieve the objective of equality and development.
In
absence of a chairperson the working of the commission has come to a
standstill.
Similarly,
the State Information Commission has been functioning with just one commissioner
in place of three.
As
per the amended RTI Act, “Chief Information Commissioner (CIC) and Information
Commissioners shall be appointed by the governor on the recommendations of a
selection committee comprising his advisors (one of whom shall be nominated as
chairperson of the committee) and the chief secretary (member secretary).”
The
amendments made in the Act “are applicable only when the state is under the
governor’s or the president’s rule.”
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