Central Information Commission

For nearly nine years, the body meant to enforce India’s Right to Information Act was itself missing most of its own staff. The Central Information Commission wasn’t restored to full strength until December 2025. This article covers what the CIC does, and why it struggled to do it.

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Polity0071 · Indian Polity and Constitution

Nine years understaffed, before the RTI watchdog was finally restored

2005

The CIC is established

Set up under the Right to Information Act, 2005, to enforce citizens’ right to information.

Dec 2016

Last operates at full strength

Vacancies begin piling up soon after, and persist for nearly a decade.

2019

Supreme Court orders prompt appointments

In Anjali Bhardwaj vs Union of India, the Court demands transparent, timely filling of vacancies.

15 Dec 2025

Restored to full strength

President Murmu swears in 8 new commissioners, filling the CIC for the first time since 2016.

A Watchdog Without Staff

A body built to guarantee transparency ultimately depends on being properly staffed itself. Years of vacancies left citizens a working right on paper, but a slower path to actually using it.

📑 Contents

1Must Know
2Good to Know
3Test Yourself
4Great to Know
5Current Affairs

Must Know

The Central Information Commission (CIC) was set up in 2005, under the Right to Information Act, 2005. It enforces citizens’ right to request information from central government bodies.
The CIC has one Chief Information Commissioner, plus up to 10 Information Commissioners. The President appoints all of them.
A committee recommends CIC appointments to the President. It includes the Prime Minister as chair, the Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha, and one Union Cabinet Minister.
The CIC acts as the final appellate authority under the RTI Act. If a citizen isn’t satisfied with a first appeal, they can bring a second appeal to the CIC.

Good to Know

The CIC can fine a Public Information Officer for delaying or refusing information. The penalty runs at ₹250 per day, capped at ₹25,000.
The RTI Act originally fixed CIC members’ terms at 5 years, or age 65, whichever came first. It also tied their salary and status to India’s Election Commission.
The RTI (Amendment) Act, 2019 changed this. It let the Central Government set CIC members’ term and salary by rule, instead of fixing them directly in the Act.
Under the current rules, CIC members serve a 3-year term. Critics argue this weakens the Commission’s independence from the government it’s meant to hold accountable.

Test Yourself

Great to Know

The CIC last operated at full strength in December 2016. Vacancies then persisted for nearly nine years, despite a 2019 Supreme Court order demanding prompt appointments.
In Anjali Bhardwaj vs Union of India (2019), the Supreme Court directed the government to fill Information Commission vacancies transparently and on time. The order was only meaningfully complied with in December 2025.
A body built to guarantee transparency ultimately depends on being properly staffed itself. Years of vacancies left citizens with a working right on paper, but a slower, harder path to actually using it.

Current Affairs

On 15 December 2025, President Droupadi Murmu swore in 8 new Information Commissioners. This restored the CIC to its full strength of one Chief Information Commissioner and 10 Information Commissioners, for the first time since 2016. (Source: PIB)
Raj Kumar Goyal, a retired IAS officer, became the CIC’s 13th Chief Information Commissioner the same day. He was appointed for a three-year term, under the government-set rules that replaced the RTI Act’s original fixed term in 2019. (Source: Manorama Yearbook)

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