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New Delhi: 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.
Terming the sequence of events "unfortunate", an official said the Air Headquarters too had been unable to identify the appropriate authority and had eventually stated that the information was not held by it.
After making further enquiries, the Air-III Division said it had learnt that the subject was dealt with by the AF/Policy wing in the Department of Defence and forwarded the application to that office.
However, a joint secretary in the AF/Policy wing denied the information, stating that the appointment of service chiefs was a sensitive matter affecting national security.
The official invoked Section 8(1)(a) of the RTI Act, which exempts disclosure of information that could prejudicially affect India's sovereignty, integrity, security and strategic interests, among others.
At a recent hearing, the respondents informed the CIC that the ministry's response denying the information on security grounds had been sent to the applicant.
They also submitted that the appointment of service chiefs was governed by statutory provisions and laws.
The CIC observed that the respondents duly addressed the queries raised in the RTI application and that the response was acceptable.
The Chief of Air Staff is appointed by the Appointments Committee of the Cabinet (ACC), which is chaired by the prime minister, with formal formalisation by the President of India, who's the supreme commander of the armed forces.
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