Virendra, former Director General of West Bengal Police will take charge as the next Chief Information Commissioner (CIC) of the state.
The name of Virendra as the next CIC was announced by state Parliamentary Affairs minister Sobhandeb Chattopadhyay after the meeting of the selection committee in the chamber of Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee at the state Assembly on Wednesday.
Virendra served as the DGP of Bengal from 2018 to 2021.
There were 15 applicants, out of which four were disqualified outright because of their educational qualification criteria and one because of age factor. “Ten names were discussed based on requisite qualifications. The Chief Minister proposed the name of Virendra, who is already a member of the State Information Commission,” Chattopadhyay said.
Among the ten names that were discussed, Raj Kanojia and Navin Parekh’s names were also on the list as they also happen to be members of the state Information Commission.
Along with the Chief Minster, state Parliamentary Affairs minister and Leader of Opposition (LoP) is part of the committee which decides on the appointment of the CIC. However, LoP Suvendu Adhikari skipped the meeting on grounds that advertisement guidelines for the post were violated.
“We do not see any valid reason for his absence. We sent him the letter 15 days back. Then we resend another letter modifying the original letter 12 days ago. If he had any reservations he had enough time to raise it,“ Chattopadhyay said.
Bengal was among the first states to set up an Information Commission after the passage of The Right to Information Act of 2005.