news details |
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| CEO Budgam appoints junior as PIO | | SIC directs DSE for departmental action | |
Early Times Report
srinagar, Jan 6: The State Information Commission (SIC) while reprimanding the Chief Education Officer (CEO) Budgam who is also the designated Public Information (PIO) under J&K Right to Information Act 2009 , has directed the Directorate of School Education to take departmental action against him as he un-authorisedly appointed his junior officer as Public Information Officer (PIO) just to avoid the wrath of State Information Commission (SIC) where the CEO was summoned in an RTI appeal case on December 4th 2014 .
Under J&K RTI Act the powers of appointing PIO's lie with the Public Authority and in this case the public authority is Directorate of School Education . The CEO had bypassed the Director School and appointed a junior officer as PIO and this was done just to save his skin , but he seems to be un aware that law will take its own course. According to SIC orders (copy available with Early Times) one Mohammad Yousuf Dar R/o Chanapora, Khanshab, Budgam filed an application under Right to Information Act (RTI) which was received by the CEO Budgam on 17.07.2014. The said RTI application was transferred by PIO cum CEO Budgam to Zonal Education Officer (ZEO) Beerwah under Section 6(3) of J&K RTI Act, 2009. The ZEO who is also the PIO of education zone Beerwah was directed by CEO to provide requisite information to the information seeker within stipulated time under an intimation to his office. The information seeker who happens to be an employee of Education department alleged that he was not provided the complete information and in this connection he knocked the doors of State Information Commission (SIC) Srinagar .
The designated PIO/CEO Budgam did not appear during the case hearing on 04.12.2014 and instead he send his representative Fatima Bano to appear before the commission . The lady officer during the case hearing informed the Commission that she has been appointed as PIO by the Chief Education Officer Budgam.
RTI experts speak :
" When Chief Education Officers (CEO's) of all the districts have been designated as PIO's , how can CEO Budgam who himself is a PIO under State RTI Act , delegate his responsibility his subordinate officer just to avoid wrath of the Information Commission ? Under State RTI Act, it is the school education director who can appoint PIO's and not the CEO " said RTI activist Balvinder Singh
SIC order against CEO Budgam :" Pertinently under Section 5 of the J&K RTI Act 2009 (designation of Public Information Officers) only Public Authority has the authority to designate Public Information Officer. The Public Authority i.e. Director School Education Kashmir has appointed Chief Education Officer Budgam as PIO which was also confirmed during proceedings by the PIO of Directorate of School Education Kashmir".
Order further reads as :
" In view of the above Commission directs Director School Education Kashmir to seek explanation from Chief Education Officer, Budgam as how he has delegated his authority to a subordinate officer and take action against him under Civil Service Conduct Rules under intimation to the Commission" |
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