Free Press Journal: Mumbai:
Saturday, 15 August 2020.
The
court had last month directed the corporation to ensure that its offices,
hearing first and second appeals filed under the RTI Act, are provided with
video-conferencing facilities
The
Mumbai civic body on Friday told the Bombay High Court it would conduct virtual
hearing on first and second appeals filed under the Right to Information (RTI)
Act so that applicants do not have to appear physically to argue their matters
amid the COVID-19 pandemic.
Advocate
Yamuna Parekh, appearing for the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC), told
a division bench of Chief Justice Dipankar Datta and Justice S P Tavade, that
circulars have been issued stating that all the first and second appellate
officers will conduct hearings on the RTI appeals via video conferencing.
"This
would be a temporary arrangement given the COVID-19 pandemic. Once the
situation improves, physical hearing would resume," Parekh told the court.
The
court had last month directed the corporation to ensure that its offices,
hearing first and second appeals filed under the RTI Act, are provided with
video-conferencing facilities.
The
direction was given on a public interest litigation filed by advocate Mayur
Faria, claiming that the BMC was insisting on people to appear before it
physically to argue their first appeals filed under the RTI instead of holding
it via video-conferencing.
Faria
said that in view of the prevalent pandemic, the BMC should hear matters
virtually as it would not be possible or might be risky for a person to travel
to the concerned ward office.
Faria
cited an example of an appeal filed by him before the BMC's A ward and said the
executive engineer of the ward was now insisting that he appear before him for
the hearing.
The
court on Friday accepted the BMCs decision and disposed of the petition.
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