New Delhi, Dec 5 (IANS) A day after the Supreme Court suspended a Central Information Commission order asking for information on the appointment of judges, outgoing Chief Information Commissioner Wajahat Habibullah Saturday shied away from entering into a confrontation on the issue - and praised the judiciary for increasing the scope of the Right To Information (RTI) Act.
“The judiciary has strengthened the functioning of the RTI Act,” Habibullah said at a media interaction at Indian Women’s Press Corps.

On Friday, the Supreme Court had suspended a Central Information Commission’s order asking the apex court’s registry to make public various documents on recent appointment of its three judges, superseding the chief justices of various high courts.

Habibullah said that courts had been very forthcoming and mentioned that the Delhi High Court had increasing the scope of the RTI Act.

Habibullah also refused to be drawn into the controversy over the naming of his successor, saying this had to be left to the prime minister’s choice.

But, he did note that the future Chief Information Commissioner had to have “modesty”, adding that if a person was modest, he or she would not “apply” for the post.

On his next innings as the Chief Information Commissioner of Jammu and Kashmir, Habibullah said one of his priority areas would to ensure that people in rural areas, where Panchayat institutions are not very strong, also benefit from the Act.

A seasoned bureaucrat who has been posted in Jammu and Kashmir several times, Habibullah is also reported to be helping the government in conducting “quiet negotiations” with separatist leaders.

Asked about this, he said: “I don’t know anything about it.”

However, Habibullah maingtained that the attack on the moderate Hurriyat Conference leader Fazal Haq Qureshi was not a setback to the peace talks.

“It will not be an impediment to the peace process,” he said.