E-Paper
Meeting for info commissioners held, notification soon, govt tells HC; hearing on April 7
Jharkhand HC deferred the hearing on information commissioners' vacancies after the state government announced a notification is expected soon.
The Jharkhand High Court (HC) deferred the hearing regarding the vacant posts of information commissioners and Lokayukta after the state government informed the HC bench that the screening committee meeting had concluded and a notification was expected soon, people aware of the development said on Wednesday.
“The advocate general (AG) informed the division bench, consisting of Chief Justice (CJ) Mahesh Sharadchandra Sonak and Justice Rajesh Shankar that the screening committee headed by the chief minister has concluded its meeting, and requested an adjournment in the matter. The AG said the CM was out of state. Notification regarding the appointment of information commissioners and Lokayukta would be done soon. Taking cognisance of the state’s positive response, the bench listed the matter for hearing on April 7,” an advocate who was part of the hearing said.
The post of the chairman of the state information commission and the six information commissioners in the state has been lying vacant since May 8, 2020 when the term of last information commissioner, Himashu Chaudhary, got over. Around 25,000 petitions are pending a hearing in the commission.
The division bench headed by the CJ is hearing a bunch of petitions questioning the vacancy in the offices of statutory bodies including the Information Commission and the Lokayukta.
Earlier, the issue of vacancy in the information commissioners at the Centre and several states including Jharkhand had also come up for hearing in the Supreme Court last year in the matter of Anjali Bharadwaj & Ors. vs. Union of India & Ors.
In its interim order on October 27, 2025, the apex court directed the Jharkhand government to complete the pending selection process in all respects within 45 days and file a compliance affidavit before it. However, the state has yet to complete the process.
While the state government informed the court about the screening committee meeting and the selection of the names for appointment, an interlocutory application (IA) has also been filed by one Vishal Kumar in the matter, claiming that the state government recommended names of people associated with political parties. Kumar has claimed it violates the Right to Information Act, 2005 as well as a Supreme Court order reaffirming the statute’s provisions.
Lawyers aware of the development said the IA was likely to be taken up for hearing along with the main petition on the next date.
