SC seeks Centre''s response on vacancies in NCW

New Delhi, Jan 14 (PTI) The Supreme Court today sought aresponse from the Centre for its failure to appoint members inNational Commission for Women (NCW) and National Commissionfor Minorities(NCM) in many posts lying vacant for manymonths.

A three-judge bench headed by Chief Justice S HKapadia, issued a notice to the Centre asking it to file itsresponse on the issue.

The court passed the order on a petition filed by anadvocate Radhakant Tripathy seeking its direction to thegovernment to fill the vacancies in a time-bound manner.

He submitted more than fifty percent posts are vacantin NCW as in the five-member Commission there are only twomembers and the government has failed to fill the vacanciesin the last one year.

"It is apparent that government is not willing to makethe apex body of women''s right fully functional in thecountry," Tripathy alleged in his petition.

He said the same is the case with Minority Commission.

"The head of National Commission for Minority and othermembers of NCM from Parsi Community have not been appointed bythe government even if the posts have been lying vacant formore than three months," he said.

"In the absence of time limit to fill the vacanciesof the members of the Commission, it purely depends upon themercy of the government to appoint the Chairperson and membersto run the Commission," he said while seeking a direction tothe government for time-bound appointment of members in theCommission.