Dear Fellows
An order was passed by Mr. R.I. Singh, Chief Information Commissioner Punjab in a Complaint Case 3375 of 2011 decided on 27 February 2012 (see Page 12) announcing therein the existence of an institution of Collegiums consisting of Chief Information Commissioner and two senior most Information Commissioners has been constituted with the approval of the Hon'ble Governor of Punjab. All complaints received against Information Commissioners in Raj Bhawan are forwarded for consideration of collegiums, which gives its view in the matter. Final decision, however, is taken by his H.E. the Governor of Punjab after considering the matter.
This was a major deviation from the standard process of making complaints to the Governor of Punjab against the Information Commissioners under Section 17 of Right to Information Act 2005.
By the constitution of this Collegium, State Information Commission Punjab has ensured in one stroke that:
- The operation of process of law (Section 17) has been very cleverly subverted.
- The Raj Bhawan has been taken care of.
- No complaint against them ever gets to see the light of the day ever.
- Their tenure is go scratch less. This is a sarcastic case of "I SCRATCH YOUR BACK – YOU SCRACH MINE" AND WE BOTH ARE HAPPY.
A RTI Application dated 14 March 2012 (Pages 08-11). was filed with the PIO of the State Information Commission. The information received is very revealing.
- Commission did a brain storming exercise with Central Information Commission and all the State Information Commissions, before coming out with this sarcastic idea of formation of a collegium. However despite all efforts there had been negligible response and even some of the states replied that there is no mechanism in the Commission regarding action on complaints against the State Information Commissioners (See File 01 Annexure-B – Letter dated 16.03.2011).
- In the same vein Commission noted that "Keeping in view of the public interest, the matter was placed before the full commission in the meeting held on 16.02.2011 and it has been resolved (sic to form a collegium). Commission has not elaborated on the Public Interest in this matter.
- Commission claimed the need arose to set up a collegium as the RTI ACTIVISTS' FEDERATION PUNJAB is PUSHING complaints against the various Information Commissioners. (Remarks of the SMB - In fact the Collegium dealt with 41 complaints in its 14 sittings and only one complaint of Mr. Balbir Aggarwal has been from the RTI ACTIVISTS' FEDERATION PUNJAB which was discussed in meetings dated 19.07.2011 of collegium consisting of R.I. Singh CIC, Kulbir Singh, PPS Gill SICs, 08 complaints decided on this meeting).
- Commission goes at length to explain that the Collegium Set up under section 15(4) of the RTI Act (See reply of PIO at page 13-17).
- Commission claim that the Collegium is an administrative arrangement and has nothing to do with the judicial function of the commission (as revealed in various meetings of the collegium dealing with the complaints).
- The collegium dismissed majority of complaints at his own level without refereeing its finding to the HE Governor of Punjab.
- It is also noticed that the most complainant has not framed their complaints as per provisions of Right to Information Act 2005 and very few were addressed to HE Governor of Punjab. Most complaints were addressed to State Information Commission Punjab, some to Nodal Department.
- Governor sent all complaints in original to the Nodal Department and very few to the Collegium.
- At Nodal Department, all complaints found their way to nowhere.
The reasons attributed to dismiss the complaints are on the following pages.
Please go through the attached files and offer your comments. That will help me file an Appeal under Section 19(1) and a Complaint too. Though, these will land with those very people who engineered this ploy to save them, and no justice is expected from them, yet it is a process to go through and it will ultimately help me during CWP in high court.
Attachment(s) from Surendera M. Bhanot
4 of 4 File(s)
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