| http://www.dnaindia.com/india/report_centre-gears-up-for-battle-with-bjp-over-chief-information-commissioner_1435534 Centre gears up for battle with BJP over chief information commissioner After the bitter fight over the appointment of chief vigilance commissioner (CVC) PJ Thomas, another battle is likely to ensue between the government and BJP over the replacement for chief information commissioner (CIC) Wajahat Habibullah. While the government is keen on inducting an IAS officer superseding MM Ansari and AN Tiwari, the two senior-most information commissioners, those close to national advisory council chairperson Sonia Gandhi are pushing for an RTI activist. On the other hand, leader of the opposition in Lok Sabha Sushma Swaraj is strongly in favour of AN Tiwari. Under the RTI Act, information commissioners are chosen by a committee comprising the prime minister, leader of the opposition in Lok Sabha, law minister and the minister for personnel. Habibullah is retiring on September 30 and since there is no provision for a temporary appointment on the powerful nine-member central information commission, the government is keen to avoid another clash with BJP. It is also under pressure from civil society activists close to Sonia who want one of them to be made CIC. They argue that bureaucrats have been obstructing RTI movement forward. Various names are doing the rounds, with Shekhar Singh, who runs an NGO, topping the list. Arvind Kejriwal is also in the run for the job, but he is considered junior in age as well as status since he quit Indian Revenue Service to become an activist. Former top cop Kiran Bedi is also aspiring to become CIC. Habibullah, a retired IAS officer of J&K cadre, was offered a top post in the Omar Abdullah government, but the Centre requested him to complete his tenure as CIC due to the dispute over his successor. Now, as he retires, the onus is on prime minister Manmohan Singh to avoid another clash with the opposition. ===== RTIwanted |
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