Four state information commissions defunct with no commissioners: Report

Four state information commissions, the top appellate bodies in RTI-related matters in states, have been lying defunct with no information commissioners to adjudicate complaints and appeals against public authorities, a report said on Friday.

The report by Satark Nagrik Sangathan, a transparency advocacy group, on the eve of the 19th anniversary of the enactment of the Right to Information Act, said the state information commissions in Goa, Jharkhand, Tripura, and Telangana have been without a commissioner.

According to the RTI Act, the state and central information commissions have a Chief Information Commissioner and 10 Information Commissioners to adjudicate complaints and appeals filed by citizens if the public authority does not supply information sought by them as per provisions of the law.

The report said no information commissioner was appointed in Jharkhand after the completion of the tenure of the last incumbent on May 8, 2020, rendering it completely defunct for more than