The Centre has refused to disclose the details of files related to nomination of Aniruddha Rajput for election to the International Law Commission (ILC), the UN organ tasked with the progressive development of international law and its codification.
The External Affairs Ministry has cited the RTI Act's section 8(1)(a) which relates to the security, strategic, scientific or economic interests of the State and section 8(1)(e) relating to information in fiduciary capacity to deny the information.
The nomination of Rajput is seen a curious choice as the External Affairs Ministry earlier used to nominate senior and experienced persons for election to the international body.
A practising lawyer of India's Supreme Court, Rajput is the first Indian nominee chosen from outside a close circle of lawyers of the Ministry of External Affairs.
Rajput won the election in the UN General Assembly for membership to the world body's top body of legal experts, garnering the highest number of votes in the Asia-Pacific group.
The members for International Law Commission have been elected from five geographical groupings of African, Asia-Pacific, Eastern European, Latin American and Caribbean and Western European states.
Rajput had got 160 votes, the highest in Asia Pacific group, in the election held through secret ballot.
An alumnus of London School of Economics and Political Science, Rajput was a member of an expert group appointed by the Law Commission of India to study and comment upon the Model Bilateral Investment Treaty 2015 of India, according to his profile submitted to the UN.
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