NITI Aayog, NHRC and Other Bodies

Constitutional bodies (specifically mentioned in the Constitution)

Statutory bodies

• NITI Aayog (National Institution for Transforming India): set up on 1 January 2015 by a Cabinet resolution (an extra-constitutional, non-statutory body). Chair: Prime Minister. It replaced the Planning Commission (1950). It has a Governing Council of all CMs and LGs.
• National Human Rights Commission (NHRC): set up under the Protection of Human Rights Act, 1993. Chair is a former Chief Justice of India. Recommendations are advisory. State Human Rights Commissions have a chair who was a High Court Chief Justice.
• Central Information Commission (CIC): under the Right to Information Act, 2005. Appointed by the President. Chaired by the Chief Information Commissioner.
• Central Vigilance Commission (CVC): statutory since 2003, set up in 1964 on the Santhanam Committee's advice. Advises on corruption in Central government.
• Lokpal and Lokayuktas Act, 2013: Lokpal is an anti-corruption ombudsman. The Chair is a former CJI or Supreme Court judge. It covers the Prime Minister with some limits. Justice P.C. Ghose was the first Lokpal (2019).
• National Green Tribunal (NGT): under the NGT Act, 2010. Headquarters in Delhi. It is a specialised body for environmental disputes and follows the principles of natural justice rather than the Code of Civil Procedure.
• Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI): created in 1963. Not statutory, derived from the Delhi Special Police Establishment Act, 1946.
• National Investigation Agency (NIA): NIA Act, 2008, after the Mumbai attacks.
• Competition Commission of India (CCI): Competition Act, 2002.
• SEBI (1992) and TRAI (1997) are other statutory regulators.

Co-operative societies

The 97th Amendment (2011) gave constitutional status to co-operative societies (Right to form co-operatives under Art 19(1)(c), DPSP Art 43B, and Part IXB). In Union of India v Rajendra N. Shah (2021) the Supreme Court held Part IXB valid only for multi-State co-operative societies. It was struck down for others because the Amendment lacked ratification by half of the States.