Business
Standard: New Delhi: Friday, 05 September 2014.
The Central
Information Commission has directed the cash-strapped national carrier Air
India to make public information on free travel facilities provided to their
top brass, ministers and parliamentarians.
Information
Commissioner Yashowardhan Azad directed the Air India to make public this
information within 15 days and also issued a show cause notice to the airlines
to explain why it did not give information within mandated 30 days period.
"...Submit
written submission, latest by 10th October, 2014, to show cause why penalty
should not be imposed on them under Section 20 (1) of the RTI Act, for not
providing information within the prescribed period under the RTI Act,"
Azad said.
The case
relates to an RTI application filed by activist Subhash Agrawal who wanted to
know guidelines regarding free air-travel extended to ministers,
parliamentarians, civil aviation ministry, Air India officials and their family
members.
He also demanded
estimated annual cost to concerned public sector airlines on such free air
travel facilities.
The activist
also sought the copy of minutes of meetings of 'Committee on violation of
protocol-norms and contemptuous behaviour of government-officers with members
of the Lok Sabha' in
Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA).
When
information was not provided to him, he approached the Commission with his
appeal.
"On
query by the Commission, why the information is not provided till date, the
respondents from Air India were not in position to give answer as they had
brought the wrong file of the same applicant," Azad pointed out.
Accepting
plea of Agrawal to treat his complaint as an appeal, the Commission directed
the Air India to provide all the information sought by the activist.
.JPG)
.JPG)
