A.R. Lakshmanan

New Delhi: A.R. Lakshmanan, retired judge of the Supreme Court, assumed charge as Chairman of the 18th Law Commission here on Monday.

The term of the 17th Commission headed by Justice M. Jagannadha Rao ended on August 31, 2006.

Though the Centre reconstituted the Commission with effect from September 1, 2006 for three years up to August 31, 2009, the post of Chairman and other members had remained unfilled.

Justice Lakshmanan is the second judge from Tamil Nadu to become the Commission Chairman, the other being Justice T.L. Venkatarama Iyer.

The 18th Commission will have a Chairman, three full-time members, one member-secretary and three or more part-time members depending upon the nature of topics. Members are to be appointed shortly.

Confidentiality clause

With the Right to Information Act in force, the Centre earlier indicated that it would delete the "confidentiality clause" on the constitution of the earlier two commissions introduced under the NDA regime.

The clause reads: "The reports of the Commission are laid on the table of each House of Parliament and until reports are so laid, the same are treated as confidential."

Consequently, the earlier commissions could not make public their reports on various topics at the time of releasing them. The Union Cabinet has already recommended that this clause be deleted while formally notifying the constitution of the 18th Commission.

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