Disclosure pertaining to complaint of sexual harassment at CISF under RTI
13 Jun, 2012Background
The appellant had filed a complaint of sexual harassment at workplace by an Inspector, CISF. She filed an application with the Central Industrial Security Force (CISF) under RTI seeking information pertaining to her complaint, such as, existence of women cell in the department, whether DG Office received her SOS message, action taken thereon, result of enquiry conducted by the Enquiry Committee etc. The Public Information Officer (PIO) denied the information to the appellant under section 24 with Second Schedule of the RTI Act. The First Appellate Authority (FAA) upheld the PIO’s reply stating that the information sought cannot be provided as the CISF was exempt from providing information except the ones that relate to cases of corruption and human rights violation and since the information does not fall under either of these two categories, the application was not maintainable.
Proceedings
The appellant submitted that the enquiry regarding her complaint began after one and a half years in Mumbai in December, 2008. The proceedings had continued periodically till October, 2009, when the case was last heard by the Enquiry Committee. But she has not been provided with the outcome of the Enquiry Committee’s report. She cited a Supreme Court judgment (Vishaka and others Vs. State of Rajasthan and others, August, 1997) wherein it was held that sexual harassment of women at the workplace is violative of Article 14, 15(1) and 21 of the Constitution of India and is also a violation of the fundamental rights under Article 19(1) Any person who, does not receive a decision within the time specified in sub¬section (1) or clause (a) of sub-section (3) of section 7, or is aggrieved by a decision of the Central Public Information Officer or State Public Information Officer, as the case may be, may within thirty days from the expiry of such period or from the receipt of such a decision prefer an appeal to such officer who is senior in rank to the Central Public Information Officer or State Public Information Officer as the case may be, in each public authority: Provided that such officer may admit the appeal after the expiry of the period of thirty days if he or she is satisfied that the appellant was prevented by sufficient cause from filing the appeal in time. (g) “to practice any profession or to carry out any occupation, trade or business.” She requested the Commission that proviso of section 24(1) Nothing contained in this Act shall apply to the intelligence and security organisations specified in the Second Schedule, being organisations established by the Central Government or any information furnished by such organisations to that Government: Provided that the information pertaining to the allegations of corruption and human rights violations shall not be excluded under this sub-section: Nothing contained in this Act shall apply to the intelligence and security organisations specified in the Second Schedule, being organisations established by the Central Government or any information furnished by such organisations to that Government: Provided that the information pertaining to the allegations of corruption and human rights violations shall not be excluded under this sub-section: of the RTI entitles her to seek and obtain information.
View of CIC
The Central Information Commission (CIC) observed that the information sought by the appellant pertaining to her alleged complaint of sexual harassment at work place, entitles the appellant to get the information as sought by her under the Proviso of section 24(1) Nothing contained in this Act shall apply to the intelligence and security organisations specified in the Second Schedule, being organisations established by the Central Government or any information furnished by such organisations to that Government: Provided that the information pertaining to the allegations of corruption and human rights violations shall not be excluded under this sub-section: Nothing contained in this Act shall apply to the intelligence and security organisations specified in the Second Schedule, being organisations established by the Central Government or any information furnished by such organisations to that Government: Provided that the information pertaining to the allegations of corruption and human rights violations shall not be excluded under this sub-section: “Provided that the information pertaining to the allegations of corruption and human rights violations shall not be excluded under this sub-section.” The Commission directed the PIO to provide the copy of the Enquiry Committee report free of cost to the appellant. Citation: Mrs. Ranu Rana v. Central Industrial Security Force in Case No. CIC/SS/A/2011/001732 & CIC/SS/A/2011/901849
RTI Citation : RTIFI/2012/CIC/389
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