Times of India: New Delhi: Monday, July 31, 2017.
The Central
Information Commission (CIC) has ruled that RTI cannot be used as a tool to
exert pressure for commercial gains.
The order
came on a complaint filed by the editor of a magazine against the Dargah Khwaja
Sahib Ajmer, which he complained had denied him information under the RTI Act.
The appellant
had complained against the public information officer of the dargah, who he
said had denied him information under the RTI Act.
The appellant
had sought information on complaints filed against employees of the dargah and
the status report of the inquiry conducted by the dargah.
In his order,
information commissioner Sridhar Acharyulu, while directing the dargah to
furnish the information to the appellant, observed that RTI Act could not be
used "to build pressure" for personal gains.
The
observation came after the public information officer of the dargah said the
RTI applications were filed after the dargah stopped giving advertisements in
the magazine edited by the appellant. The appellant, in a counter argument, had
said that he had a "right" to the advertisements.
In the order,
Acharyulu said, "As a journalist, appellant has every right to criticise
the functioning of public authority. As a citizen, he can also file RTI
application. But he has no right to demand advertisements for his magazine
building pressure of RTI applications."
Acharyulu
also cited the Press Council of India Act, which allows a public authority to
file a complaint against a journalist for unethical conduct, if any.
The reminder
came after the appellant said he had also filed a complaint to the Press
Council of India against the dargah for not giving advertisement.
The order
assumes importance in the backdrop of complaints from several quarters about
the misuse of the RTI Act.
While the Act
enables citizens to get information from government bodies on a host of issues,
complaints of the misuse of the Act as a means of intimidation have also been
doing the rounds.