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Decision on CVC, CIC appointments deferred

by IBNS 22 May 2015, 10:04 pm

New Delhi, May 23 (IBNS) The government on Saturday could not reach a decision on the appointment in key posts in the Chief Vigilance Commission and the Central Information Commission even though a high-profile selection committee met at Prime Minister Narendra Modi's residence.

Reports said there will be another meeting on the issue shortly.

Chaired by the PM, the meeting was attended by Home Minister Rajnath Singh, Finance Minister Arun Jaitley, Leader of Congress party in Lok Sabha Mallikarjun Kharge, Minister of State for Personnel Jitendra Singh and senior officials of PMO.

 The selection panel was to finalise from a shortlist  the names of Information Commissioners in CIC and Vigilance Commissioners in CVC.

The meeting was held  Weeks after Congress President Sonia Gandhi's scathing criticism in Parliament for the Modi government's "deplorable lapse" in keeping posts vital to transparency and good governance vacant while showing "extraordinary urgency" in introducing bills.

Reports said the post of Chief Information Commissioner has been lying vacant for over nine months after . Rajiv Mathur’s term ended on August 22, 2014. 

Posts for three Information Commissioner in the CIC have also been lying vacant. 

After the Lok Sabha elections, which witnessed  the Congress reduced to just 44 seats, the lack of a Leader of Opposition stood as a hurdle to the appointment of members to statutory bodies that require a bipartisan selection panel. The government then decided to allow the Congress to join the selection panels as the single largest opposition party.