As per reports, Dr. Manmohan Singh is in favour of excluding the office of the Chief Justice of India (CJI) from falling under the ambit of the RTI Act whereas Sonia Gandhi has opposed any amendments in the Act.
The changes proposed by the Prime Minister in the RTI Act will keep the office of the CJI out of purview of the Act.
It is also believed that Prime Minister Singh has written a letter to Sonia agreeing that that some changes are needed in the RTI Act to “address the concerns of the judiciary.”
He also stressed that keeping the CJI office out of its purview will secure confidential information related to the appointment of judges and higher administrative decisions from public scanner.
Prime Minister was reportedly approached by CJI KG Balakrishnan in November 2009, who wrote a letter to Dr Manmohan Singh expressing his concerns over the possible consequences of bringing his office into the purview of the RTI Act.
The CJI also sought exemption from the RTI law in crucial matters.
Dr Singh is in favour of streamlining the Act, but only after consulting all stakeholders. It is believed that the Prime Minister has also directed the Department of Personnel and Training (DoPT), which implements the act, to assess whether any changes are possible.
However, the problem occurred when some NGOs and activists got clues about the CJI letter to the Prime Minister and subsequently approached Sonia Gandhi for intervention.
On her turn, Sonia reportedly wrote a letter to the Prime Minister explaining why she does not want any changes in the existing RTI Act.
Expressing her doubts, Sonia also emphasised on the proper implementation of the Act.
One of the reasons for the exercise could be the approaching deadline for the Supreme Court to challenge the January 12 judgment of the Delhi High Court, which put the CJI’s office under the RTI Act. The Delhi high Court also gave the petitioners a 60-day deadline to challenge its ruling.
One of the reasons for the exercise could be the approaching deadline for the Supreme Court to challenge the January 12 judgment of the Delhi High Court, which put the CJI’s office under the RTI Act. The Delhi high Court also gave the petitioners a 60-day deadline to challenge its ruling. The top court has roughly a week left to challenge the HC verdict before itself.
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