Hindustan Times: Pune: Sunday, February 04, 2018.
The
Maharashtra government has refused to share a copy of the inquiry report
relating to IAS officer Radheshyam Mopalwar, who had faced allegations of
bribery in August 2017, but was cleared of the charges and reinstated in
service.
The report
was sought through a Right to Information (RTI) Act application filed by
Pune-based activist Vivek Velankar.
Mopalwar was
sent on leave in August by chief minister Devendra Fadnavis following a raging
controversy about an audio clip that went viral in which a man was heard asking
for a bribe of Rs1 crore to clear a redevelopment project in Borivali. Satish
Mangle, a complainant in an extortion case, had claimed that the voice was that
of Mopalwar, who denied it.
Following the
allegations, the government constituted a three-member committee headed by
former chief secretary Johny Joseph which cleared the 1995-batch officer of all
charges.
The general
administration department (GAD) in its reply to Velankar said that the inquiry
report could not be provided as “action on the report is awaited”.
JB Kulkarni,
additional secretary, GAD, in his response to the RTI application said, “The
action on the report submitted by the three-member committee headed by former
chief secretary Johny Joseph is awaited. Therefore, the report cannot be shared
with you.”
The
additional secretary said that the applicant was entitled to approach the
“appellate authority” within 30 days to pursue the matter.
Section 8 of
the Right to Information (RTI) Act 2005, offers exemption to the government
from sharing information in various situations. In this particular case,
however, the government did not invoke Section 8 while denying the information.
Velankar, who had filed his application on December 29, two days after Mopalwar
was reinstated, expressed surprise that Section 8 was not invoked while denying
the report.
Mopalwar was
then serving as managing director of the Maharashtra State Road Development
Corporation (MSRDC) and was incharge of the chief minister’s ambitious project,
Nagpur-Mumbai expressway Samruddhi corridor.
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