Early Times Report
srinagar, Nov 13: The State Chief Information Commissioner (CIC) G R Sufi has sought personal appearance of Commissioner / Secretary to Government PWD (R&B) for his failure to implement the provisions of J&K Right to Information Act. A penalty notice under section 17 has also been issued against the PIO of the Ministry.
Details available with Early Times reveal that Umar Javid filed RTI application before PIO, PWD (R&B) Department, Civil Secretariat Srinagar received by PIO on 06-05-2015, seeking information about seniority list of in-service Junior Engineers (Mechanical) diploma holders and degree holders along with their categories. He also sought details of latest seniority list of in-service Assistant Engineers, Mechanical, promoted or Incharge and Assistant Executive Engineers, Mechanical (promoted or Incharge diploma holders and degree holders separately along with their category. The RTI applicant along with this information sought Names of all in-service Diploma holders Engineers (Mechanical) who have submitted their degree certificates including those forwarded to your department from other departments from the year 2007 to the year 2014 ,
Names of all in-service Diploma holders Engineers (Mechanical) whose seniority is fixed in the seniority list of Degree holders (Mechanical) after submission of Degree certificates despite submitted their Degree certificates from the year 2007 to the year 2014 and reasons for keeping their cases pending.
Names of all in-service Diploma holders Engineers (Mechanical) whose cases for inclusion in the seniority list of Degree holders (Mechanical) are still pending in your department despite submitted their Degree certificates from the year 2007 to the year 2014 and reasons for keeping their cases pending.
Names of the institutions/colleges where from the degree of Mechanical Engineering were acquired by such Diploma holder engineers with the year of completion of degree course.
As the prescribed fees of Rs. 10/- in view of PIO 's plea was not in accordance with prescribed rules, therefore, PIO rejected the appellant's application vide his order 12- 05-2015, taking the plea that the fees paid was not in accordance with Rule 3 of the J&K RTI Rules, 2012. The State Information Commission (SIC) after going through the proof of fees during case hearing on 21.10.2015 found that the appellant has addressed IPO of Rs. 10/- to PIO rather than Accounts Officer, as mentioned under Rule 3 of the J&K RTI Rules, 2012.
"The intention of law, however is that fees should be credited to the account of public authority from which information is sought. This intention has been met by the appellant, therefore, PIO should have not taken purely a technical view and rejected the appellant's application, but he should have accepted the application and action taken accordingly " reads the SIC order
Appellant later on came up with fresh RTI application and deposited Rs. 10/- afresh to account of Accounts Officer of the concerned public authority on 19-05-2015. After receipt of fresh fees, PIO was obliged to pass a proper order and dispose of the application accordingly. However, nothing of the sort was done.
The CIC in its order observed that the Commission while going through the record found that all the information asked by the appellant is givable, therefore, Commission directs disclosure of said information within 30 days of the receipt of this order. Since, information was not provided to the information seeker on time, therefore, Manzoor Ahmad, Under Secretary-cum-PIO, PW(R&B) Department, Civil Secretariat is directed to explain why penalty may not be imposed under Section 17 of the J&K RTI Act, 2009 on him for not providing information to the information seeker on time.
Commission directed the Registrar to mark copy of this order to Commissioner/Secretary to Government, PW(R&B) Department, Civil Secretariat, requiring him to appear before the Commission at Jammu Office after Darbar Move for considering the issue of recommendations for the purpose as laid down in Section 22(5) J&K RTI Act, 2009" |
