The Hindu:Bangalore: Monday, March 25, 2013
Under Section 8(1) (a), information can be denied on grounds of National Security
It is hard to imagine that any information preserved in Karnataka state Archives on the Bababudangiri shrine in Chikmagalur could potentially threaten national security or inside a breach of the law.
However, a reply given by the directorate, Karnatake state Archives, to a RTI query suggested that it does.
In his RTI application on March 6, 2013, Firoz M. Khan, an RTI activist and litigant in a case pertaining to Bababudangiri shrine pending before the Supreme court, sought copies o old records in the archives on the syncretic shrine atop the Bababudarangiri hill..
One line Reply:
The one-line reply received by him the next day from PIO states that the documents cannot be provided as per section 8(1) a of RTI act.
Section 8(1) a of the RTI Act deals with various grounds on which any authority gets exemption from disclosure of information Sub-section 8(1) a, in particular, states that there is no obligation to give any citizen "Information, the disclosure of which would prejudicial affect the sovereignty and integrity of India, the scrutiny strategic scientific or economic interest of the state, relation with foreign state or lead to incitement of an offence. e 65 year old told The Hindu,
Mr. Khan is befuddled with this reply. The 65 year old told The Hindu:"The archival documents are crucial for evidence in the court case which relate to the religious nature of the shrine. I do not understand how the existing material on the shrine can post a threat of any kind."
No Motive:
There has been a series of controversies and litigation around the Bababudangiri shrine - called Guru Dattatreya Bababudan Swami Dargah - over the last few years. File photo: K. Bhagya Prakash
The Director of the Karnataka state Archives, Kanchivaradaiah, however, said there was no motive behind the denial of information. He said he would inquire about why the PIO had cited 8(1) a i reply to the RTI query. "If the applicant gives specific details, such as the Government Order number and date, we can provide information," Mr. Kanchivaradaiah said, "We have recrod on Bababudangiri starting from 1866 and it is hard to find specific records unless there are specific details," he said.
However Mt. Khan said he had identified the list of documents needed (350 pages) and provided details with dates. "I went there the following day with Rs.710,i was to pay towards photocopying of the pages when i was told that i cannot be given the documents," he said.
Some of these documents, he added, were cited in an earlier case in 2005, fourght in a Chikmagalur Court, which showed that they were not out of bounds to the public. There has been series of controversies and lifigations around the Bababudangiri shrine - called Guru Dattatreya Bababudan Swami Dargah - over the last few years.
There has been a series of controversies and litigation around the Bababudangiri shrine — alled Guru Dattatreya Bababudan Swami Dargah — over the last few years. The Sangh Parivar and its The Sangh Parivar and its affiliates have taken up various campaigns and programmes to “Hinduise” the syncretic shrine that traditionally had both Muslim and Hindu devotees.
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