Money control: New Delhi: Thursday, July 06, 2017.
The CIC today
directed the state- run HUDCO to disclose information about expensive gifts
including iPhones, iPads and Mont Blanc pens allegedly given by its CMD to
different people, suspecting an attempt was being made to "cover up"
the issue.
Information
Commissioner Sridhar Acharyulu also marked a copy of the order to Minister of
State for Urban Development Rao Inderjit Singh and Secretary Nandita Chatterjee
for necessary action.
The order was
issued on an RTI application seeking information from the Housing and Urban
Development Corporation about presents given for the financial years 2013-14,
2014-15 and 2015-16, names of people who received the gifts, and number of
expensive items gifted including iPhones and premium pens such as Mont Blanc by
its Chairman-cum-Managing Director M Ravi Kanth.
Vishwas
Bhamburkar, the applicant, had also sought to know the number of
air-conditioners installed at Kanth's residence from official expenses, his electricity
bills, complaints pending against Kanth, among other things.
Central
Public Information Officer of HUDCO asked the applicant to forward his identity
proof only "to ascertain" whether information available will be
useful to him either "personally or socially or nationally".
During the
hearing, representative of the applicant, Mukul Jain alleged that around Rs
five crore worth "malpractice" had happened at Hudco in the form of
giving and receiving expensive gifts involving senior people in the Urban
Development Ministry.
Jain
contended the CPIO had no authority to demand the identity proof and to
ascertain whether information will be useful to him either personally, socially
or nationally.
In the past
also, the Commission had directed HUDCO to allow the same applicant to inspect
the records but the direction were not complied with, Jain alleged.
Despite
notices from the Commission, no representative was sent by the HUDCO to attend
the CIC hearings.
"The
public authority has a duty to inform details about gifts purchased; if given
to any officer, to whom and why; what is the legal basis or justification for
giving gifts, did they maintain any register of gifts purchased and delivered,
if not the receipt of gifts, and about expenditure on the house and office of
MD etc," Acharyulu said.
In a strongly
worded show cause notice to officials handling RTI applications at the HUDCO,
Acharyulu said they "breached their duty" in not answering how many
Mont Blanc Pens, iPhones and iPads were purchased and gifted.
He said it
appeared that HUDCO was trying "to cover up the whole issue" by
avoiding responding to RTI applications of the appellant.
"The
Commission directs the CPIO DK Gupta to explain why Commission should not
recommend disciplinary action against him for acting in defiance of RTI Act,
2005 and gives him, as a last chance, time up to 20th July 2017 to file his
explanation to show cause notice," he said.
He also
directed Gupta to explain why maximum penalty should not be imposed on him for
not complying with the order of the CIC.
"The
anti-RTI attitude of HUDCO officers in this case gives rise to suspicion that
there was a serious scandal of purchasing gifts worth crores, and spending huge
amount of public money on residence and office of the Managing Director, and
hence the public authority, the office of MD and RTI section are trying to
avoid responses by putting forward lame excuses just to consume time,"
Acharyulu noted.