-The Times of India India is likely to be on an unchartered territory when it implements the Supreme Court order mandating the presence of a judicial officer and an expert to hear appeals in information commissions across the country. According to an independent survey on information commissions across the world there was no precedent of retired or serving judges as members of panels hearing cases related to freedom of information. The rapid...

-The Hindu The Supreme Court order on the appointment of Information Commissioners has had an unsettling effect on the working of the Right to Information Act, an elegant seven-year old law that has immeasurably empowered the average citizen. What was designed as an easy-to-use legal tool for the poor and weak may now be at risk of getting tangled in a web of complexity. The Court has, inter alia, ruled that...

-Live Mint CIC suspends hearings to seek govt’s opinion; RTI activists criticize the move, saying it could lead to delays The Supreme Court said on Thursday that information commissions at the central and state levels should have two-person benches, with one person being a “judicial member” and the other an “expert member”. That prompted the Central Information Commission (CIC) to suspend hearings to enable it to seek the government’s opinion and led to...

-The Hindu Only Chief Justice of HC or judge of SC can become CIC Thursday’s Supreme Court ruling on appointments to the Central and State Information Commissions has shaken the world of Right to Information with activists and information commissioners wondering if the order will effectively halt the functioning of the Commissions. Asked Chief Information Commissioner Satyananda Mishra: “Does the ruling mean that the RTI Act stands amended suo motu ?” He has...

-The Times of India The judiciary-government tussle over code of conduct for judges is far from over. Though the government has decided to give statutory status to the Code of Conduct evolved by the Supreme Court in 1997, law minister Salman Khurshid on Thursday said this does not mean judiciary will be free to comment on constitutional authorities in open court. The government is firm on introducing a specific provision in the...