Free Press Journal: Mumbai: Thursday, August 02, 2018.
The Municipal
Commissioner of Mumbai, Ajoy Mehta, seems to have stirred up a hornet’s nest by
labelling activists ‘professional complainants’. The BMC chief has been dragged
to the Bombay High Court by an RTI activist who seeks an explanation for the
former’s purported ‘crackdown’ on activism in the city.
A division
bench of Justices RM Borde and VM Deshpande issued a notice to Mehta, seeking
his response to a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) filed by activist Kamlakar
Shenoy. In his PIL filed through advocate Aditya Bhatt, Shenoy has urged the
bench to restrain Mehta from making any ‘illegal and unconstitutional’
statements for ‘shielding’ errant officials of the BMC. “In the aftermath of
the massive fire in an eatery at Kamala Mills, earlier this year, the civic
chief gave interviews to various media houses stating to have issued a circular
asking the Deputy Municipal Commissioners (DMCs) of seven zones in the city to
prepare a list of professional complainants, who file bulk Right to Information
(RTI) applications, seeking details of building plans to allegedly extort money
from property owners in exchange for getting them permissions or licences with
the help of civic officials in order to crack down and break their backs,” the
petition highlights.
“Instead of
acting against errant officials responsible for giving permissions to various
illegal extensions in restaurants causing mishaps, Mehta intends to shift the
burden and responsibility of loss of lives and limbs and property caused by
connivance of BMC officials which is headed by him on RTI and social activists.
The circulars are in violation to the rights guaranteed under Articles 14, 19
and 21. It will dissuade activists from filing complaints against illegal
activities which endangers life and limbs of citizens and loss to public
property,” the plea reads.
The petition
further claims that Mehta has suo motu taken illegal action by making such a
list of ‘professional complainants’, and instead, has failed to undertake
‘legal-remedial’ steps by filing complaints with police or any other competent
authority. “The matter relates to public interest as it is important to protect
whistle blowers and activists who with the power of pen facilitate justice in
the country. The RTI Act has today become the backbone of freedom of speech and
making a list of persons who make complaints against illegal activities and
branding them as professional complainants is a violation of the fundamental
rights guaranteed by the Constitution of India,” the petition argues.
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