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| Is Wajahat coming, at all? | | | Early Times Report
Jammu, Dec 5: Amidst the reports that Chief Information Commissioner of India Wajahat Habibullah has requested the government of India for permission to withdraw his resignation, the state government has filed caveat before the High Court for an opportunity of being heard in a Public Interest Litigation challenging the appointment of chief of Jammu and Kashmir State Information Commission.
Habibullah was formally appointed as State Chief Information Commissioner by the Governor in third week of October but he could not take oath and operationalise office in Jammu and Kashmir for technical reasons. The Central Right to Information Act provided that the post of the Chief Information Commissioner can be kept vacant therefore Habibullah was asked to wait for the appointment of his successor.
However, recently an activist from Akhnoor has filed a Public Interest Litigation challenging the very appointment of Habibullah as Chief Information in Jammu and Kashmir. The litigant has based his question on a strong premise that being an outsider he cannot preside over a body which cant even give information to the non-state subjects. The Jammu and Kashmir Right to Information Act provides that an outsider cannot seek information under the RTI.
The basis of this challenge is being seen so strong that the state government has filed a caveat before the High Court to hear its counsel on the case while taking the PIL for consideration. The case is reportedly listed for hearing on Monday.
Meanwhile, reports said that Habibullah has requested the government of India to permit him for withdrawing his letter of resignation which he had tendered in October after accepting proposal of Jammu and Kashmir government to take the RTI charge here in the state. Efforts were made to speak to Habibullah on the issue but he could not be reached. Sources said that his joining as Chief Information Commissioner in Jammu and Kashmir is apparently in deep legal trouble.
Meanwhile, at a press conference in New Delhi today Wajahat Habibillah said, that the Jammu and Kashmir Right to Information (RTI) Act is "stronger" than the Central Act as there is no state government department exempt from the transparency law.
"In Jammu and Kashmir...under the exemption list (under section 24) there is at present no department at all...the department regarding which the information is totally exempted. There is none. These are some aspects in which the Jammu and Kashmir law is a little stronger," Habibullah told reporters in New Delhi.
Regarding the Army and para-military organisations, which have a substantial presence in the state, Habibullah said they fall under the Central RTI Act.
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