Central Information Commission
Complaint No.CIC/PB/C/2008/00878-SM dated 28.11.2007
Right to Information Act-2005-Under Section (18)
Dated: 23 July 2009
Name of the Complainant : Shri Shashi Bhan Singh Chouhan,
35 C/1, Nayagaon,
Rampur, Jabalpur, M.P.
Name of the Public Authority : CPIO, Central Bank of India,
Regional Office, 601 Napier Town,
Jabalpur, M.P.
The Complainant was present in person.
On behalf of the Respondent, the following were present:-
(i) Shri Sumant Jain, CPIO
(ii) Shri Shukla
2. The case in brief is that the Appellant had, in his application dated 28
November 2007, requested the CPIO for a copy of the guarantee deposited
by him in connection with the loan provided to M/s Chouhan Farms. The
CPIO replied on 19 December 2007 and informed him that the file
concerning the loan account of M/s Chouhan Farms had been stolen from
the Branch and that an FIR had been lodged with the police and, therefore,
they were not in a position to provide a copy of the required document. Not
satisfied with this reply, the Appellant sent an appeal to the Zonal Manager
on 29 January 2008 being the first Appellate Authority. The Appellate
Authority decided his appeal in his brief order dated 13 March 2008 and held
that the CPIO had correctly dealt with the matter and there was no need for
him to interfere. It is this order of the Appellate Authority that the
Appellant has challenged in his second appeal before the CIC.
3. This case was taken up for hearing through videoconferencing. Both
the parties, namely, the representative of the Appellant and the
Respondent were present in the Jabalpur studio of the NIC. We heard the
CIC/PB/C/2008/00878-SM
submissions of both the parties. The Respondent submitted that the relevant
case file had been stolen from the Branch and that the Branch had lodged a
report with the police and the documents concerning the guarantee being
part of that file, they could not provide a copy of that. During the
discussion, it emerged that the Branch had photocopies of the said file or at
least most of the relevant papers which they have been using in connection
with the court case for recovery of the loan. Therefore, we direct the CPIO
to make a photocopy of the relevant papers relating to the guarantee, if
available, among the photocopy of the original file available with them, and
provide to the Appellant within 10 working days from the receipt of this
order. If, in case, the guarantee is not available even in the photocopied
file, the CPIO shall clearly state so in his reply.
4. With the above direction, the appeal is disposed off.
5. Copies of this order be given free of cost to the parties.
(Satyananda Mishra)
Information Commissioner
Authenticated true copy. Additional copies of orders shall be supplied
against application and payment of the charges prescribed under the Act to the
CPIO of this Commission.
(Vijay Bhalla)
Assistant Registrar
CIC/PB/C/2008/00878-SM