No Question under RTI – PIO

[Mahendra Kumar Gupta]

No Question under RTI – PIO

No questions. That's the stand of a state government department on the Right to Information Act. The department has said that it will not furnish information under the RTI Act if the application contains questions.

"Under the RTI Act, 2005, your queries submitted to the public information officer cannot be in question form... Under Section 2(f), which defines 'information' , questions have not been defined as information. Hence we cannot furnish the information you had sought." This was the written response of the public information officer (PIO) of the legal metrology department to four RTI applications filed by TOI.

The legal metrology department, part of the labour department, acts on complaints regarding weights and measures and maximum retail price. Consumers often complain of overcharging and under-measurement by traders as well as a lack of response to complaints. TOI filed RTI applications seeking information on the number of inspections conducted by the department and the number of shopkeepers penalized for offences in the last five years. The PIO rejected the application saying questions were not allowed.

RTI activists said the response was a classic example of PIOs denying information without valid reasons. "If we cannot ask questions, why do we need to file an application under the RTI Act? The state information commission should impose a fine or take action against such PIOs," said RTI activist M Thuyamurthy.

Former bureaucrat M G Devasahayam said the RTI Act had failed in the state. "There is no format for seeking information under the RTI Act. PIOs invent excuses to deny information. They should be show more sincerity towards implementing the legislation. The SIC should take stringent action against such officials," he said.

State labour commissioner Dr B Chandramohan said he was unaware of information being denied to RTI applicants. "I will check with the officials concerned," he said.

According to Section 2(f) of the RTI Act, information means any material in any form, including records, documents, memos, e-mails , press releases, circulars, contracts, samples, models, data held in any electronic form and information relating to any private body which can be accessed by a public authority under any other law in force.

HOW TO FILE AN RTI APPLICATION

An RTI application can be made on a sheet of plain paper and can have any number of questions It should be addressed to the public information officer of the department or organisation concerned 10 should be paid as application fee by cash or through postal order, court fee stamp or demand draft Questions should be direct and leave no room for the information officer to give vague replies Information officer has to reply within 30 days of receipt of the application, failing which he is liable to a fine of 250 per day Appeal can be filed with the head of the department in which the application was filed, if the information officer fails to reply within the deadline Second appeal can be filed before the central or state information commission if applicant is not satisfied with the replies.

Comments 

This denial is only to conceal its inefficiency by the Deptt. PIO should tell how such information can be asked without framing the question on the number of inspections and shopkeepers penalized. The details sought in the questions very much falls in the category of information u.s. 2(f) of the RTI Act.  From the reply, it is clear that the deptt.  may be sitting pretty when the public is being cheated by giving less weight.  Money has big purchasing power and can purchase the officials too. In the RTI Act, there is no such provision to deny information on this pretext.