[HumJanenge] New Tactic adopted by corrupt bureaucracy and Information Commission to protect a degenerate system in Odisha

 

  New Tactic adopted by corrupt bureaucracy and Information Commission to protect a degenerate system in Odisha

Dear  friends

Please  find  attached  a news  published in Sambad which has highlighted  the  issue as to  how  the PIOs  taking the plea of  File Missing    avoid      to provide  the information to the applicants.  In course of  the hearings   many PIOs pleaded   that  as the file concerned is missing,  the information sought by the applicant couldn't  be traced out despite  their hard efforts and so the information couldn't be supplied.  In course of the said  hearings,  the Odisha Information Commissioners do argue in their support quoting the RTI Act  that  the information which is held by the Public Authorities  can be disclosed, and. if the information were  not  available at all, the question of PIO  supplying  the information doesn't arise. Then immediately, the Information Commissioners ask the concerned PIO  to file  an affidavit  saying that  the information was missing. Such an apologetic stance of the Commission gives a golden opportunity to the PIO  to  file the affidavit  and send a copy to the Commission with intimation in some cases to the applicant concerned. By showing such Commission dictated  plea, many PIOs  have started  filing  the affidavit that the information is not available. On account of this newly devised ploy, a large number of  applicants are getting deprived of the information they have sought by spending money, time and energy.  The PIOs are quite aware  that  the poor applicants can not  challenge their affidavits  at the Commission's level or in the higher courts.   Thus, the corrupt bureaucracy and the Commission are hands in glove to protect a degenerate  system by keeping the information secret with the help of their new tactic.

Attached news is a  bright example of it.

 

Thanks

Pradip Pradhan