Gujarat high court moved demanding penalty on PIO for delayed reply under RTI Act

AHMEDABAD: Gujarat high court on Monday issued notice to the State Chief Information Commissioner, Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation and concerned public information officer (PIO) in response to an appeal demanding imposition of penalty of Rs 25,000 on PIO for over 600 days' delay in parting with information under the RTI laws.
In this case, petitioner Mohammed Yasin Ansari asked for information related to street light poles in Lambha ward from AMC in June 2014.The PIO Dipen Shah, assistant city engineer of South Zone, did not supply information. When the issue went before the State Information Commission, he furnished details, but more than 600 days had passed by then.
Ansari requested State Chief Information Commissioner Balwant Singh to impose penalty of Rs 25,000 on Shah for delay in furnishing details without any reason. But the information commission did not penalize the PIO. This brought Ansari before the high court seeking imposition of penalty on PIO, but a single-judge bench rejected his plea on the ground that the action is not mandatory and cannot be proceeded without giving an opportunity of hearing to the PIO.
Ansari filed an appeal against the HC order before the division bench and insisted that the law mandates the commission to impose penalty on erring PIO for delay. "After hearing our arguments, the division bench admitted the matter and issued notice to concerned officials and kept further proceedings on December 26," said Ansari's advocate Ratna Vora.