Maharashtra: Government removed state Anti Corruption Bureau from RTI ambit on election eve

Economic Times: Mumbai: Wednesday, 22 October 2014.

The Prithviraj Chavan government passed a resolution that has insulated the state Anti Corruption Bureau from Right to Information Act, a few day before the model code of conduct came in to being.

The Maharashtra government cleared the resolution on September 6, just six days before the model code of conduct was enforced with the announcement of the Maharashtra election schedule announced by the EC.

The move is being seen as a sign to protect many of the Congress and NCP bigwigs who are facing cases of corruption against them. The ACB wants to conduct an 'open inquiry' against NCP leaders Ajit Pawar and Sunil Tatkare, while Congress leader Kripashankar Singh already faces allegations of corruption against him and is also being investigated by the ACB.

"Once the people are not able to monitor the cases, then the investigating agencies can do what they want with the case. The move will only give rise to rampant corruption as the politicians and bureaucrats would know that even if there is a probe against them, it can easily be derailed during the investigation stage and no one would know." said RTI activist Anil Galgali.

Sanjay Tiwari, an activist who had filed cases against Mumbai Congress leader and former Minister Kripashankar Singh in a case of disproportionate assets which is currently being investigated by the ACB and has unearthed various other scams, said that the government should now withdraw the RTI.

" If you keep everything out of the ambit of the RTI, then why have the act? Lets not have the act at all."said Tiwari. Giving an instance of how lack of oversight on investigating agencies like ACB scuttles probe, the activist pointed out to a more than Rs 10 crore scam that he had unearthed in 2006.

"In 2006, after the floods in Mumbai, the government had given compensation to families, however in many cases the compensation was siphoned off by government officials themselves without paying those affected people."said Tiwari.

In spite of repeated attempts former Maharashtra Chief Minister Prithviraj Chavan was not available for comments. Galgali though said that considering how many NCP leaders from the party had joined the BJP, he is not hopeful of the BJP led government repealing the GR.