Cops duck RTI query on time limit for cases

Daily Bhaskar: Pune: Monday, June 04, 2012.

Even as Team Anna is raising its voice for the implementation of a citizens’ charter which would set a time frame for the resolution of people’s complaints, the Pune police commissionerate seems to think otherwise.

In reply to a Right to Information (RTI) query filed by city activist Anoop Awasthi regarding the time period for solving cases filed by citizens, the commissionerate stated that the query "does not come under the ambit of the RTI Act, 2005".

On May 24, Awasthi had filed an RTI query asking about the time period to dispose of various complaints filed by citizens between 2001 and 2012. Besides, he had also enquired about the time period for disposing of serious crime cases and government resolutions specifying the time period.

In reply to the query, the police commissionerate said that the information does not come under the ambit of the RTI Act.

Awasthi said, “I am shocked at the reply from assistant commissioner of police (administration), VS Sonawane. The police simply refused to divulge the information. My question was who is responsible for handling the grievances at the single window. What are the guidelines being followed to address these grievances? There are thousands of complaints pending.”

Former special inspector general of police, Suresh Khopade, told DNA, “The question very much comes under the RTI Act. The police should give the information under RTI. The government resolution (GR) mentions the time limits, so the police should provide this information. We think that the Pune police are not divulging this information because they are not disposing of cases in time.”

Giving suggestions to the city commissionerate, Khopade said, “There should be a fixed time period to dispose of complaints. Otherwise people will stop believing in the police force.”

RTI activist Vijay Kumbhar said, “The information most certainly comes under the ambit of RTI. In the recent past, the home department had issued a GR framing a three-pronged method to dispose of complaints. The reply by the city commissionerate shows that the Pune police are not implementing the GR in the city.”