Congress MP Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury on Tuesday wrote to President Droupadi Murmu, regarding the selection of the Chief Information Commissioner Heeralal Samariya. Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury has alleged that he, as member of the selection committee as the Leader of Opposition (LoP) in the Lok Sabha was “kept in the dark” about the selection of Heeralal Samariya as the Chief Information Commissioner. He said all democratic norms, customs and procedures were “thrown to the wind”.
“It is with extreme sadness and a heavy heart that I bring to your notice that all democratic norms, customs and procedures were thrown to the wind in the matter of selection of the Central Information Commissioner and Information Commissioners,” Adhir Ranjan said in his letter.
In his letter to President Murmu, Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury said, “…I, despite being a Member of the Selection Committee in my capacity as the Leader of the largest Opposition Party in Lok Sabha was totally kept in the dark about the selection of CIC/ICs, at the meeting that was held at the residence of the Prime Minister on 3 November…” Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury alleged the voice of the Opposition has been “ignored”.
Former IAS officer Heeralal Samariya was on Monday sworn in as the Chief Information Commissioner by President Droupadi Murmu.
Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury also alleged he had requested for a change in the timing of the meeting from evening to morning which was not accepted and he was “not even informed” about the decisions taken at the meeting. The selection committee is headed by PM Narendra Modi.
“The fact that within hours of the meeting in which only the prime minister and the home minister were present and the ‘face of the opposition’, that is, me, as a bona-fide member of the selection committee was not present, the names of the selected candidates were announced, notified and also sworn into Office, only indicates that the entire selection exercise was pre-determined,” he alleged, adding, “The process, as it unfolded within a short span, is not conducive for your democratic ethos and norms.”
He said, “More blatant is the fact that I was not even informed of the outcome of the meeting. And even more glaringly, apart from being deprived of the opportunity to be a part of the meeting called in connection with the selection process, I received an invitation this morning for attending the swearing-in ceremony of the newly selected candidates for the posts of CIC/ICS,” the Congress leader said.
The CIC post had been lying vacant after YK Sinha’s term ended on October 3.
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Updated: 07 Nov 2023, 02:01 PM IST