New Delhi: Congress MP and Leader of the Opposition (LoP) Rahul Gandhi on Wednesday reportedly submitted a formal note of dissent during a high-level meeting with Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Union Home Minister Amit Shah to finalise appointments to major transparency institutions, including the Central Information Commission (CIC) and the Central Vigilance Commission (CVC).
Reportedly, the meeting lasted for more than an hour, during which Gandhi objected to the names proposed by the government and submitted his disagreement in writing.
As the Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha, Gandhi is part of the statutory selection panels for these watchdog bodies. Reportedly, he has repeatedly accused the government of attempting to compromise the independence of institutions tasked with ensuring accountability.
Earlier in the day, Gandhi escalated his criticism of the government on X, accusing the BJP of transforming the Election Commission into a “tool for vote chori”.
Sharing a clip of his Tuesday Lok Sabha speech on X, he posed three pointed questions on recent changes to election laws, the removal of the Chief Justice of India from the EC selection panel, the grant of near-total legal immunity to the Commission ahead of the 2024 polls, and the decision to destroy CCTV footage within 45 days.
The Chief Information Commissioner and 10 Information Commissioners are responsible for reviewing and providing information in response to RTI appeals filed by applicants who are not satisfied with government responses.
The CIC is the highest body in regard to RTI-related complaints or appeals. The CIC currently has only two commissioners. These are Anandi Ramalingam and Vinod Kumar Tiwari. Over 30,000 RTI cases are pending, reported NDTV. The last Chief Information Commissioner was Heeralal Samariya, who demitted office on September 13 after turning 65. He was appointed as the CIC in November 2023.
