RTI Activist Sports Innerwear to Protest Denial of Info Under RTI

News18: Bhopal: Friday, September 15, 2017.

A local RTI activist turned up at Bhopal Mayor's bungalow in innerwear to protest denial of Swachchta Abhiyan information under Right to Information Act. The information, if provided, could expose huge corruption in the civic body's endeavours towards Swachchta Abhiyan, he claimed.

The locals this morning were quite amused after having spotted a man sitting in his undergarments outside mayor Alok Sharma's bungalow. Soon after media persons landed on the scene and the man identified himself as RTI activist Manoj Tripathi.

The man claimed that he was running from pillar to post for drawing information of modular toilets purchase by Bhopal Municipal Corporation. "I had moved an application with information officer and after not getting any reply, approached appellate officer who ordered officers concerned to provide information on my plea without any fee but nothing happened," Tripathi claimed.

Afterwards, he approached the mayor who ordered officers of his weekly chaupal to provide information thrice but still he did not get the desired information, he said. The volunteer is of the view that huge corruption has taken place in the purchase of modular toilets under Swachchta Abhiyan.

Seeing no option left, he decided to protest outside mayor's bungalow since 7 am on Thursday. The mayor did not meet the protester and a police patrol van arrived hours later and took Tripathi to TT Nagar police station.

Interestingly, then BMC Commissioner Chhavi Bharadwaj had initiated stringent action against corruption within the civic body but was unceremoniously transferred. Since then anti-graft crusaders have turned the heat on the mayor Alok Sharma. The RTI activists had even complained to Lokayukta against untimely transfer of the commissioner busy in cracking down on corruption.

The mayor Alok Sharma could not be reached for comments on the incident.

Interestingly, not able to build enough toilets, BMC under pressure from Swachchta Survey deadlines had this year bought modular toilets in large numbers. The city eventually had finished second after Indore among cleanest cities of the country.