Whispers Forum

The Opposition parties shot themselves in the foot by disrespectful behavior in Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha. A look at behaviour of our forefathers since 1947 is instructive and inspiring. No placards were allowed in Parliament and MPs knew the rules perfectly. All members of Parliament observed the rules and maintained decorum. Everybody ensured that rules were followed to the last minute as per Conduct Rules. During former PM Rajiv Gandhi's tenure, his party held a huge majority of 403 LS seats. Nobody in Opposition parties then behaved in an ill-disciplined manner. Currently the Opposite is true, so why this uncouth behaviour? What is good for the Swan is good for the Gander. As for demeaning the Vice President of India and Speaker of Rajya Sabha, using unparliamentary mimicry and personal insults, the people of India have watched in total shock on TV and other media channels. This conduct behaves badly for the Opposition parties. Loud murmurs are already being voiced across Bharat. The response from the people will soon be evident in 2024 Lok Sabha Elections.
Devindra Sethi

En bloc suspension of MPs of both Houses of Parliament in the ongoing winter session of Parliament raises doubts on its intentions. Showing placards, going to the Well of Houses and demanding adjournment motions are standard practices of opposition members and has been acknowledged as convention per se. To get rid of such practices will be only wishful thinking. Secondly, whether the Bills passed without participation of opposition benches will carry any sanctity in the eyes of the general public even though as per parliament procedures, nothing wrong can be attributed. This opposition -treasury standoff is not good for parliamentary democracy. Mutual respect for each other is the hallmark of healthy democracy. Showing eye ball to eye ball to each other is a battlefield language of armed forces for their enemies and it has no place in Parliament. The onus of reestablishing participative democracy now lies with the voters of 2024. Hope, the voters will give a second thought to brute majority vis a vis opposition mukt Parliament.
Raj Kumar Thakur

Crucial I.N.D.I.A. Alliance meeting is scheduled to be held on 19 Dec. But Congress can get fewer seats in some states especially after its dismal performance in 3 state assembly polls. In Uttar Pradesh, the state with the highest number of Lok Sabha members, Congress will ask for at least 22 seats, but the Samajwadi Party can offer only 7-8 seats. In Maharashtra, due to the Shiv Sena and NCP split, Congress expects more seats, but Uddhav Thackeray and Sharad Pawar aim to contest all seats, creating potential controversies in some states. Although the Alliance has not experienced any substantial controversies thus far, some leaders within the Alliance have made statements against other coalition parties, sparking discussions in political circles. Prominent figures such as Bihar CM Nitish Kumar, Samajwadi Party leader Akhilesh Yadav, and Congress leader Kamal Nath have been part of these discussions.
Ritika Malviya

Congress has taken a big decision in the state. Handing over the leadership to the young generation, the party has made Jitu Patwari the State Congress President, Umang Singhar as the Leader of Opposition and Hemant Katare as the Deputy Leader of the Congress Legislature Party in the Assembly. All these three leaders are below 50 years of age. Hemant Katare is only 38 years old. Both leaders Jitu Patwari and Umang Singhar are directly connected to Rahul Gandhi. So it is expected that the young leaders will remain more active on ground. But it remains to be seen if things will actually change on ground. With only 4 months in LS polls, the youth leaders don’t have much time. Besides, Patwari faces a double challenge as he lost the assembly election and must now win in the LS election.
Neha Singh

The Appellant filed an RTI application seeking information related to E-FIR regarding a cyber-fraud such as action on the FIR, as per the Citizens Charter, in how many days should HE expect reply on above FIR, the reasons under Sec 4 (1) (d) of the RTI Act for the delay, whether the above FIR contents are found frivolous etc. The appellant submitted before the CIC that the information provided was not clear and satisfactory. If the FIR in question was untraceable then it implies that there is laxity on the part of the organisation/ personnel involved and action should be taken against the erring official (s). The ACP tendered his apology for the ambiguity caused by the PIO’s response and clarified that while mentioning that the E FIR is untraced, the SHO, Sultanpuri implied that the accused are not traceable. The CIC observed that the RTI application has not been attended appropriately as the point wise reply of the SHO, Sultanpuri was poorly drafted causing ambiguity for the Appellant. Therefore, the CIC directed the PIO to provide a clear and cogent point wise reply with the updated factual position to the Appellant by 15.01.2024 under intimation to the Commission.
Comments
Readers would have noted the use of section 4(1)(d) of the RTI Act by the appellant to seek the reasons for the delay. A PIO should be careful while sending a reply to ensure an unambiguous reply.
Citation: Ms. Shikha Sharma v. Delhi Police, CIC/DEPOL/A/2022/125152; Date of Decision: 13.12.2023
Dr Anuradha Verma (dranuradhaverma@yahoo.co.in) is a RTI Consultant currently working with IIM Visakhapatnam. She has co-authored the books, RTI Right to Information - Law and Practice and PIO’s Guide to RTI. She offers consultancy on RTI matters and Third party audit. Her other articles can be read at the website of RTI Foundation of India at the link www.rtifoundationofindia.com

Prime Minister Modi not only knows the pulse of the people but polishes the raw diamond idea of Congress and Rahul Gandhi and finishes it on into fine cut diamonds and puts it for BJP victory crown. It was Rahul Gandhi who preached OBC politics without practicing it and considering OBC, SC and ST for any crucial Rajya Sabha seats or CM candidates or crucial party positions but Prime Minister Modi ensured maximum representation to these communities and got electoral benefits. Congress seems to have lost sight of things to come and are 10 years behind BJP in hard work, political strategy and giving retirement to old guards.
S C Saboo

The Appellant sought Action Taken Report with corroborative photographs in respect of Delhi Development Authority (DDA) Special Task Force (STF) complaint 2020031440075. He said that the RTI Application pertains to the removal of illegal construction and encroachment on roof terrace by his neighbour. The STF was constituted by the Hon’ble Supreme Court for removing the unauthorized construction, and in this particular case no action has been taken by DDA despite many complaints over three to four years. The appellant claimed dereliction of duty on the part of the concerned STF officials, as they have chosen to hide and to provide misleading information. The PIO explained that the complaint was forwarded to the concerned official which is SDMC, who have further booked the said unauthorised construction for removing the said encroachment. He further stated that STF meetings are conducted in every 15 days and this particular matter was taken up after which they have also provided the Action Taken Report to the Appellant. He informed that they are only authorized to direct the SDMC and they are not responsible for removing the encroachment. The appellant replied that an undated ATR has been furnished to him many a times which is of no value. Moreover, the SDMC is not following the directions of the STF, and cannot get away with accountability as well as responsibility by stating that they had forwarded it to some other department. He raised the concern that if the SDMC is not implementing the directions of STF as per directives of the Hon’ble Supreme Court, some actions should be taken against them but no such initiative has been taken even by the STF, which indicates that they are working hand in glove. The CIC directed the CPIO to re-examine the RTI application and furnish correct and detailed information to the Appellant. Further, the CIC observed that unauthorized construction poses a grave threat to both individuals and communities. Therefore, the CIC advised the Principal Commissioner (Housing) DDA, to consider the case of the Appellant in the backdrop of the above facts and take corrective action, if required.
Comments
The RTI Act, 2005 has been used by many applicants to enforce the rule of law. If an authority is not taking action as prescribed under law, the Act may be used to force it to take required action.
Citation: Captain P. J. Ashish v. Delhi Development Authority, CIC/DDATY/A/2023/610212-UM; Date of Decision: 06.11.2023
Dr Anuradha Verma (dranuradhaverma@yahoo.co.in) is a RTI Consultant currently working with IIM Visakhapatnam. She has co-authored the books, RTI Right to Information - Law and Practice and PIO’s Guide to RTI. She offers consultancy on RTI matters and Third party audit. Her other articles can be read at the website of RTI Foundation of India at the link www.rtifoundationofindia.com