freedom1 Forum welcomes the move the National Information Commission (NIC) took against the Judicial Council for violating the Right to Information (RTI) Act. The NIC slapped a fine of Rs. 1 to the Judicial Council (JC) for not abiding by its directive. The NIC, on December 29, 2011 had written to the JC ordering it to provide the information sought by journalist Anant Raj Luitel regarding the appointment of the judges, function of the judges, process of their removal and others after 2006, said Chief Information Commissioner, Binay Kasajoo. However, the JC denied information in spite of repeated directives. So, it was fined as per Rule 32 (5) of the NIC. Journalist Luitel had the sought information with the Council on December 9, 2011. Although the fine is minimal, the NIC's punishment to the JC is symbolic that any public agency hiding information is punishable as it is the violation of the rule. The NIC move has come in a bid to make the JC transparent and accountable to the public.
Freedom Forum is a prominent non-governmental organization in Nepal dedicated to institutionalizing democracy, protecting and promoting human rights, press freedom, freedom of expression, right to information, promoting audit accountability, open and accountable budget, public finance reforms, citizen engagement in public finance management and citizen participation in audit. Established in February 2005, the organization emerged in response to the political turmoil following Former King Gyanendra’s coup dated February 1, 2005, which imposed severe restrictions on media and democratic rights. A group of media professionals, legal experts, and academics founded Freedom Forum to safeguard Nepal’s hard-earned democratic freedoms during this repressive period.
