CENTRAL INFORMATION COMMISSION
Complaint No. - CIC/WB/C/2007/00651
Right to Information Act- Section 18 (1) (b)
Complainant: Shri Vijay Bahadur Singh
Respondent: Central Administrative Tribunal (CAT)
Facts
The Commission has received a complaint from Shri Vijay Bahadur
Singh of Baqar Zai, Shahjahanpur, UP that his request under RTI Act
submitted to the CPIO, Central Administrative Tribunal, Allahabad seeking
information on the status of case No. 2228/96/841 of 1999 has not been
responded to although the same was duly submitted along with the requisite
fee dated 7.4.2007.
Admitting the complaint of Shri Vijay Bahadur Singh under section 18 (1)
(b) the Commission issued a notice to the PIO, CAT, Allahabad for furnishing
comments on the complaint. In response the CPIO and Jt. Registrar, CAT,
Allahabad Shri P. Ulganathan has submitted his comments informing the
Commission as under:-
“The Hon’ble Central Information Commission has held in
appeal no. CIC/AT/A/2006/00586 dated September 18 of 2007
that section 4 (1) (d) “does not apply to a Judicial proceeding
conducted by a Court or a Tribunal as it refers only to
Administration and Quasi Judicial decistars 1 of Public
Authorities”. The date of hearing/ Adjournment is always given
by the Hon’ble Tribunal and it forms part of a Judicial
Proceedings of the Particular case. Hence no individual can
resort to the RTI Act for obtaining the information and it is left to
the discretion of Tribunal to give such an information.
It is also pertinent to note that the applicant was in
correspondence with the registry in connection with this case
and this Tribunal in its discretion, had also been giving various
replies advising him to file appropriate petitions before the
registry. Copies of communication, sent by the Registry are also
enclosed for ready reference which will provide that his requests
were dealt with by this Tribunal under the Act and rule
applicable to this Tribunal.
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It is also a fact that the applicant had not filed any First Appeal
under Section 19 of the RTI Act and the present First Appellate
Authority is Shri A. K. Ajmani, Registrar, CAT, Allahabad and not
the Ministry of Personal Grievances and pension.”
A copy of this comment, however, has not been endorsed to the
complainant.
DECISION NOTICE
It is obvious from the comments submitted by the CPIO, CAT that the
request of Shri Vijay Bahadur Singh has indeed not been responded to at all.
It is a sad comment on the functioning of CAT that complainant had to take
recourse to the RTI Act to obtain what should have been routine information
as described in the Decision of this Commission cited in his response to our
Complaint Notice by CPIO Shri Ulganathan. At any rate even were CPIO CAT
to find fit to refuse the information sought a response was obligatory as per
Sec 7 sub-section 1, citing reasons for such refusal. The CPIO, CAT is
hereby directed to supply the information sought by appellant Shri Vijay
Bahadur Singh vide his RTI application dated 7-4-2007 within 10 working
days of the date of receipt of this decision notice and the then CPIO will
also show cause in writing by 29.6.’09 as to why a penalty for failing to
respond to the RTI application may not be imposed on him @ Rs. 250/- per
day commencing from 7.5.’07 when the information became due subject to a
maximum of Rs 25,000/-.
If not satisfied with the information received Shri Vijay Bahadur Singh
will be well advised to file first appeal to the appellate authority, CAT u/s 19 (1)
of the RTI Act.
Announced. Notice of this decision be given free of cost to the parties.
Wajahat Habibullah
(Chief Information Commissioner)
27-5-2009
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Authenticated true copy, additional copies of order shall be supplied against
application and payment of the charge prescribed under the Act to the CPIO
of this Commission.
Pankaj K. P. Shreyaskar
Joint Registrar.
27-5-2009
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