New Delhi, Nov. 4 -- Three defence offices were unable to identify the authority keeping records relating to the appointment of the Chief of Air Staff, while the defence ministry invoked national security to deny information on the selection process or the policy and guidelines governing the appointment of service chiefs, according to an RTI reply.
The applicant had sought the names of the officers considered for appointing the air chief after the retirement of Air Chief Marshal B S Dhanoa, documents and correspondence relating to the appointment of Air Chief Marshal R K S Bhadauria as his successor, and details of the policy governing such appointments.
The defence ministry, however, denied the information, describing the appointment of service chiefs as a sensitive matter impinging on national security, and invoking Section 8(1)(a) of the RTI Act, which the Central Information Commission (CIC) upheld.
Dhanoa served as the Chief of Air Staff from January 1, 2017, to September 30, 2019, before Bhadauria took over the post and served until September 30, 2021.
The RTI application, filed on March 25, 2024, was initially submitted to the Department of Defence, which transferred it to the Department of Military Affairs (DMA).
The DMA subsequently forwarded it to the Air Headquarters.
The Air Headquarters replied that "no such information" was held by the public authority.
In its subsequent submission to the Central Information Commission (CIC), the Air-III Division of the DMA said it had found no records relating to the appointment of the Chief of Air Staff. It also acknowledged that the official handling the application was not aware as to which section or division dealt with such appointments.
The Air-III Division said the application was forwarded to Air Headquarters as the authority dealing with the subject might require its inputs and could also know which division in the ministry handled the matter.
Published by HT Digital Content Services with permission from Millennium Post.