New Delhi: Though it has been 13 years since the Right to Information Act, 2005 was enacted by parliament, the Central Information Commission (CIC) recently had to remind the Lok Sabha to improve mechanisms for receiving and responding to RTI applications.
Chief information commissioner R.K. Mathur on May 30 advised the secretary general of Lok Sabha Secretariat to “make adequate arrangements in the Lok Sabha Secretariat for receiving RTI applications submitted in person and to receive payment of fee”. In this regard, he said, “The security also needs to be appropriately instructed to help RTI applicants.”
Recommending steps which would streamline the process, Mathur said, “The mechanisms of receiving RTI applications in Lok Sabha Secretariat must be displayed prominently on a notice board.”
`Send old records to National Archives of India’
He said that the Lok Sabha should send its old records to the National Archives of India, and stated that the secretary general of the lower house “may look into the applicability of the Public Records Act, 1993” and that he may also “look into the matter of maintenance of Lok Sabha website and display of quality certificate on their website in consultation with the Director General, NIC (National Informatics Centre)”.
The CIC chief’s observations came in a matter filed by appellant Anil Sharma, who had in January 2017 sought four pages of the Lok Sabha debates. During the hearing on May 30, Sharma demanded that the Lok Sabha secretariat provide him certified copies of the four pages of the debates, relating to the cultivation of opium, that the house had seen on April 6, 1979.
The appellant had also contended that copies of these debates had not been put up on the website in compliance with Section 4(1)(b)(xv) of the RTI Act. He had also pointed out that an assistant central public information officer was working as the CPIO and had opposed this. Further, Sharma had demanded that more than one CPIO, who also acts as the first appellate authority, should be assigned in the Lok Sabha secretariat.
He also suggested that a display board for receiving RTI applications be put up in the secretariat, the role of transparency officer be defined on the website and old records of the Lok Sabha secretariat be kept in the National Archives as per the Public Records Act, 1993. He had also pointed out that the Lok Sabha website maintained by the NIC was not proper, as the records relating to RTI applications and first appeals were hosted on a private internet protocol address. He had also sought the display of the quality certificate of the website on it.
`Digitisation of old records in progress’
The Lok Sabha secretariat official had submitted during the hearing that the copy of the pages of the debates sought had already been provided. He also stated that the secretariat was in the process of digitising old records, which would be put up on the Lok Sabha website for the general public.
On hearing both sides, Mathur had stated that there was no provision for a transparency officer in the RTI Act and also held that there was no mala fide intent on the part of the CPIO.
However, he issued a detailed advisory to the Lok Sabha secretariat to improve its RTI compliance.
`Expedite process of uploading Lok Sabha debates on website’
Mathur also advised the secretary general of the Lok Sabha secretariat to expedite the process of uploading Lok Sabha debates on their website. He also stated that “it is to be ensured that the reply of RTI application is sent only by the CPIO” and that “more than one CPIO/FAA may be designated as per requirement.”
Further, Mathur said the first appellate authority should give the opportunity of a hearing to the RTI applicant at the first appellate stage in view of the Supreme Court’s judgment in Manohar s/o Manikrao Anchule v. State of Maharashtra & Anr., wherein it had observed that the principle was “clear and settled” that “the right of hearing, even if not provided under a specific statute, the principles of natural justice shall so demand, unless by specific law, it is excluded. It is more so when exercise of authority is likely to vest the person with consequences of civil nature.”