Non-compliance of CIC order - CIC took an adverse view of the inaction on the part of the respondent - CIC directed the Director General, Geological Survey of India to take corrective action and recommended disciplinary action against PIO u/s 20(2)
14 Dec, 2019O R D E R
1. The Commission, vide order dated 20.09.2017, had directed the CPIO, Geological Survey of India, Kolkata to provide the basis of the information furnished by him, in response to point no. 2 of the RTI application, to the appellant, within a period of four weeks from the date of receipt of a copy of the order.
2. The appellant, vide his letter dated ‘Nil’, had stated that no information in compliance with the order of the Commission dated 20.09.2017 has been provided to him.
3. The comments of the respondent on the appellant’s non-compliance petition were called vide Commission’s letter dated 08.02.2018. However, no comments in response to the Commission’s letter dated 08.02.2018 has been received by the Commission.
Hearing on 03.12.2019:
4. The appellant, Shri B. K. Bisaria and the respondents, Shri Ranjeet Kumar Singh, Deputy Director (Personnel and Administration), GSI, Kolkata and Shri S.C. Bose, the then Assistant Director (Personnel and Administration) and CPIO, RTI Cell, GSI, Kolkata attended the hearing through video conferencing.
5. The appellant submitted that no reply in compliance with the order of the Commission has been furnished to him by the respondent. The appellant requested the Commission to direct the respondent to provide a reply in compliance with the order of the Commission.
6. The respondent admitted that, inadvertently, no reply in compliance with the order of the Commission could be furnished to the appellant. The respondent tendered his unconditional apology for this lapse and requested the Commission to condone the same. The respondent assured that complete information shall be provided to the appellant in compliance with the Commission’s order dated 20.09.2017 at the earliest.
Decision:
7. The Commission, after hearing the submissions of both the parties and perusing the records, observes that no reply in compliance with the Commission’s order dated 20.09.2017 was given to the appellant. The Commission also takes an adverse view of the inaction on the part of the respondent in not responding to the Commission’s letter dated 08.02.2019 regarding non-compliance of the Commission’s order. This shows that the respondent had deliberately not complied with the Commission’s order. The Commission, therefore, directs the Director General, Geological Survey of India, Kolkata to take corrective action in the matter. The Commission also recommends, under Section 20(2) Where the Central Information Commission or the State Information Commission, as the case may be, at the time of deciding any complaint or appeal is of the opinion that the Central Public Information Officer or the State Public Information Officer, as the case may be, has, without any reasonable cause and persistently, failed to receive an application for information or has not furnished information within the time specified under sub-section (1) of section 7 or malafidely denied the request for information or knowingly given incorrect, incomplete or misleading information or destroyed information which was the subject of the request or obstructed in any manner in furnishing the information, it shall recommend for disciplinary action against the Central Public Information Officer or the State Public Information Officer, as the case may be, under the service rules applicable to him. of the RTI Act, disciplinary action against Shri S.C. Bose, the then Assistant Director (Personnel and Administration) and CPIO, RTI Cell, GSI, Kolkata under the service rules applicable to him for not complying with the order of the Commission dated 20.09.2017. A copy of this order may be forwarded to the Director General, Geological Survey of India, Kolkata for necessary action.
8. With the above observations, the non-compliance complaint is disposed of.
9. Copy of the decision be provided free of cost to the parties.
Sd/-
Sudhir Bhargava
Chief Information Commissioner
Citation: B. K. Bisaria v. CPIO, Geological Survey of India in Appeal No. CIC/YA/A/2016/001876, Date of order: 04.12.2019