news details |
|
|
| PHQ on ET story: Delay in RTI reply due to 'shortage of PIOs' | | | Early Times Report
SRINAGAR, July 2: In a quick reaction to the Early Times story on suppression of information under RTI Act on the FIRs registered against Police officials on account of land grabbing in Jammu and Samba districts, J&K Police headquarters today claimed that delay in providing reply to the applicant was the result of shortage of Public Information Officers (PIOs) in Police organisation.
In a statement issued here today, the PHQ spokesman said that there was no question of deliberate suppression of information or red-tapism at the level of PHQ. He said that as soon as an application under the RTI Act was received, it was transmitted to the concerned unit on priority and the information was collected and supplied to the applicant in accordance with the law and the rules.
"…earlier there was only one PIO for the entire State Police stationed at PHQ, but realising that some delay would at times be caused in supplying information to the applicants, the department has, in order to curtail the avoidable delay, already nominated PIOs at Zonal, Range and District levels so that the information could be supplied to the applicants at the earliest" he said.
The spokesman added that after the news related to land grabbing in Jammu and Samba districts appeared early this year, the PHQ immediately took cognizance of the matter and asked the Divisional Commissioner, Jammu to go into the details of the press report vide PHQ letters followed by reminder on 17-02-2011 and inform about police action warranted in the case, as it is only the revenue authorities who besides being the custodian of government land, have land records to verify authenticity of the land grabbing reports and also initiating legal action into the matter.
"It may be reiterated that matters pertaining to land grabbing fall within the domain and jurisdiction of revenue authorities who are supposed to initiate action. Police action can follow, if required, after the enquiry by the revenue authorities, who have to prove or disprove any land grabbing. Information under the RTI Act sought on the issue of land grabbing, by an advocate of the J&K High Court at Jammu, which has already been despatched to him from PHQ Srinagar on 01-07-2011. The information provided to the applicant was not readily available with the PHQ and as such had to be collected from the concerned quarters", the spokesman said.
He claimed that DGP had never directed his subordinate levels to provide replies to the RTI applications only with his knowledge and consent. "The information was forwarded by the IGP Jammu Zone to the PHQ, only because at the relevant time, only one PIO had been nominated for the entire police force, who was stationed at PHQ and was responsible for furnishing the information to the applicants", he asserted. He further claimed that in order to cut short the procedural delays, the DGP had nominated PIOs at various levels in the Organization, who were under a statutory obligation to dispose of all the applications under RTI pertaining to their respective jurisdictions, and they were doing the same.
Informed sources, meanwhile, revealed to this newspaper that it was only after a great deal of discussion on today's Early Times story that Police Headquarters quickly dispatched reply to the applicant in yesterday's date. According to these sources, PHQ's claim of the letter and reminder having gone to Divisional Commissioner Jammu on 10-02-2011 and 17-02-2011 respectively was not correct as no dispatch numbers were available in record. Besides, officials working in the office of Divisional Commissioner Jammu and Additional Commissioner Jammu maintained that no such communications had been ever received from Police Headquarters.
For fresh readers, it is to be repeated that all government officers are bound to provide information sought under RTI Act within 30 days of receiving an application but the applicant in this particular case has not received any replies even upto 90 days despite sending reminders and despositing fee of Rs 1760 through bank draft on 30-5-2011. |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| |
| |
|
|
|
|
 |
|
|
|
|
STOCK UPDATE |
|
|
 |
| BSE
Sensex |
 |
| NSE
Nifty |
|
|
| |
CRICKET UPDATE |
|
|
|
|
| |
| |
|
|
| |
|
|
|
|
| |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
