Central Information Commission Judgements

Mr. Yogendra Singh vs Dept. Of Trade & Taxes, Govt. Of Nct … on 29 March, 2010

Central Information Commission
Mr. Yogendra Singh vs Dept. Of Trade & Taxes, Govt. Of Nct … on 29 March, 2010
                    CENTRAL INFORMATION COMMISSION
                     Club Building, Opposite Ber Sarai Market,
                       Old JNU Campus, New Delhi - 110067.
                               Tel: +91-11-26161796

                                                     Decision No.CIC/SG/A/2010/000367/7279
                                                           Appeal No.CIC/SG/A/2010/000367

Appellant                                   :       Mr. Yogendra Singh
                                                    RZ-4B, Mohan Nagar,
                                                    Palam Road,
                                                    New Delhi-110046

Respondent (1)                              :       PIO & Dy. Commissioner (Zone VI)
                                                    Dept. of Trade & Taxes
                                                    Govt. of NCT of Delhi
                                                    Vyapar Bhawan I P Estate
                                                    New Delhi - 110002

RTI applications filed on                   :       26/10/2009
PIO replied                                 :       03/12/2009
First Appeal filed on                       :       09/12/2009
First Appellate Authority order             :       12/01/2010
Second Appeal Received on                   :       12/02/2010
Notice of Hearing Sent on                   :       03/03/2010
Hearing Held on                             :       29/03/2010

Information Sought:
Appellant sought the information about the action taken on his complaints dated 29/0/2009 and
14/10/2009 by Dept. of Trade and Taxes Govt. of NCT Delhi against the proprietor of M/S New
Arora Electronics and concerned officials of the department.

PIO's Reply:
Replied via letter dated 03-12-2009, that the Appellants application has been received by the
office of PIO and is being examined for taking necessary action on it.
Grounds for First Appeal:
Not provided with correct information as sought by the Appellant.
Order of the First Appellate Authority:
PIO is directed to provide appropriate reply as required by the appellant within 10 days from the
date of issuance of the order.

Grounds for Second Appeal:
The PIO has not provided the complete information so far.

Relevant Facts

emerging during Hearing:

The following were present
Appellant: Mr. Yogendra Singh;

Respondent: Absent;

The Appellant states that he has received no information after the order of the First
Appellate Authority.

Decision:

The appeal is allowed.

The PIO is directed to give the complete information to the appellant before
15 April 2010.

The issue before the Commission is of not supplying the complete, required information by
the PIO within 30 days as required by the law.

From the facts before the Commission it is apparent that the PIO is guilty of not furnishing
information within the time specified under sub-section (1) of Section 7 by not replying within
30 days, as per the requirement of the RTI Act. He has further refused to obey the orders of his
superior officer, which raises a reasonable doubt that the denial of information may also be
malafide. The First Appellate Authority has clearly ordered the information to be given.

It appears that the PIO’s actions attract the penal provisions of Section 20 (1). A showcause
notice is being issued to him, and he is directed give his reasons to the Commission to show
cause why penalty should not be levied on him.

He will present himself before the Commission at the above address on 29 April 2010 at
11.00am alongwith his written submissions showing cause why penalty should not be imposed
on him as mandated under Section 20 (1). He will also submit proof of having given the
information to the appellant.

If there are other persons responsible for the delay in providing the information to the Appellant
the PIO is directed to inform such persons of the show cause hearing and direct them to appear
before the Commission with him.

This decision is announced in open chamber.

Notice of this decision be given free of cost to the parties.
Any information in compliance with this Order will be provided free of cost as per Section 7(6) of RTI Act.

Shailesh Gandhi
Information Commissioner
29 March 2010
(In any correspondence on this decision, mention the complete decision number.)ASH