[HumJanenge] Arbitary and unilateral disposal of cases by Orissa Information Commission

Arbitrary Orissa Information Commission must stop the illegal practice of arbitrarily closing the cases of Complaint and 2^nd appeal and compelling the complainants and appellants to come through 2^st appeal again

 

Dear friends,

 

Over  about four  months now, the Appellants or Complainants of Orissa have been receiving   orders of Orissa Information Commission whereby their cases  were unilaterally disposed and closed  by the Commission by way of remanding them  back to the 1st Appellate Authority along with a direction to the latter to provide the information within one month of the order so received.  Besides, as per the said order, in case the complainants/appellants  fail to get the information from the 1^st appellate authority in stipulated time, they can approach the Commission again by way of filing a 2nd appeal afresh.   

 

It needs to be mentioned here that the aggrieved RTI applicants  had to start with lodged their complaint or second appeal around a year back     in the hope of getting justice from the Commission. But It has been observed that the Commission without hearing the concerned parties as required under the Act has arbitrarily and unilaterally   disposed and closed hundreds of the cases by remanding them to the 1^st Appellate Authority. It has been further observed that in most of such cases the concerned appellate authorities have neither cared to hear the cases nor ensured the supply of information to the concerned applicants.

As a result of such rough-shod approach adopted by the Commission, a large number of complainants and appellants are now frustrated and hopeless. The alternative option of approaching the Commission through a 2^nd appeal again as suggested by the Commission is not only costly and time consuming, but also highly uncertain since they do not know when their fresh 2^nd appeal would be heard by the Commission.

 

It is pertinent here to visit Section 18 (1) of the RTI Act, as per which any person being aggrieved by non-supply of information or supply of false, incomplete or misleading information is entitled to directly lodge a complaint  before the Commission. Thus the Commission is duty bound to receive the complaints and adjudicate them through a due process of law. The RTI Act has nowhere allowed the Commission to remand the complaints for decision by the 1^st appellate authority, which is dealt with under Section 19(1) of the Act.  If necessary the Commission may take up some deserving cases for further enquiry by under Section 18 (3) of the Act before taking a decision in the matter.

 

Similarly, Orissa Information Commission (Appeal Procedure) Rules 2006 has clearly laid down that the Commissions shall issue notices to both parties for hearing and give   reasonable opportunity of being heard to them before pronouncing its decision in open proceedings.

 

But it is woefully surprising that the Commission without hearing both parties adopts the short-circuited path of disposing and closing the cases arbitrarily and unilaterally.

 

Besides, the Commission's hot-haste manner of closing the  cases is not only violation of the RTI Act but also an attack on natural justice, about which the Information Commissioners of Orissa have been paying lip-service, especially when they provide several opportunities of hearing in a row to the defaulting PIOs.   

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If the Commission continues to close the cases in such arbitrary manner it will not only destroy the letter and spirit of RTI Act but also kill the interest  of the people of Orissa in using it. Thus the dream of ushering in of a transparent and accountable system of governance by the use of RTI Act shall ever remain  a distant dream for the people of Orissa.

 

Pradip  Pradhan

M-99378-43482