The RTI Act Amendment states that term of offices, salaries, allowances and other terms and conditions shall be “as prescribed by the Central Government”.
New Delhi| The lower house of parliament on Monday passed the RTI Amendment Act. Speaker Om Birla announced that the motion to vote on the bill was passed with 218 ‘yes’ votes as against 79 ‘no’ votes.
The government introduced the bill to amend the RTI Act which will change pay and allowances of information commissioners, who currently enjoy benefits equivalent to election commissioners.
The move has been criticised by activists who said it will affect independence and neutrality of the transparency panel.
Also Read: What is RTI Amendment bill and why is the opposition against it
The bill proposes to amend the Right to Information Act, 2005 so as to provide that the term of office of, and the salaries, allowances and other terms and conditions of service of, the Chief Information Commissioner and Information Commissioners and the State Chief Information Commissioner and the State Information Commissioners, “shall be such as may be prescribed by the Central Government.”
Also Watch: Will RTI destroy Judicial Independence?
The proposed bill dated July 15 has been circulated among the members of Lok Sabha by Minister of State for Personnel Jitendra Singh. It will be introduced Friday, a highly placed official said.
It states that term of offices, salaries, allowances and other terms and conditions shall be “as prescribed by the Central Government”.
As an independent media platform, we do not take advertisements from governments and corporate houses. It is you, our readers, who have supported us on our journey to do honest and unbiased journalism. Please contribute, so that we can continue to do the same in future.
