The Times of India: Chennai: Friday, 28 November 2025.
After four years of contradictory replies and shifting claims, the state information panel has warned the deputy block development officer of St Thomas Mount panchayat union for misleading both an RTI applicant and the commission.
However it chose to be
lenient, sparing the official of a penalty even though the observation came in
the non-compliance petition over the commission's earlier order, while the
original petition sought information four years ago.
In 2021, G Venkatesan of Medavakkam filed a petition under the RTI Act seeking details of the records of a complaint regarding a construction on govt encroached land in St Thomas Mount panchayat union without proper approvals.
Later, he filed a complaint petition before the state information commission, and in 2023, the commission ordered the public information officer to allow the petitioner to peruse the relevant documents in person and provide a copy of the details he sought for free if the pages did not exceed 100 pages.
The commission warned of action if the order was not obeyed.
In 2024, the petitioner lodged a non-compliance petition stating that the commission's order was not complied with. On Nov 19, the complaint petition came up for hearing before the chief election commissioner Md Shakeel Akhter.
PIO A Gomathi submitted that the reply was sent to the petitioner in Jan this year. Recording that the reply was sent much later than the deadline set by the commission, the chief commissioner directed the then PIO Anbazhagan to show cause why disciplinary action should not be initiated against him.
After four years of contradictory replies and shifting claims, the state information panel has warned the deputy block development officer of St Thomas Mount panchayat union for misleading both an RTI applicant and the commission.
In 2021, G Venkatesan of Medavakkam filed a petition under the RTI Act seeking details of the records of a complaint regarding a construction on govt encroached land in St Thomas Mount panchayat union without proper approvals.
Later, he filed a complaint petition before the state information commission, and in 2023, the commission ordered the public information officer to allow the petitioner to peruse the relevant documents in person and provide a copy of the details he sought for free if the pages did not exceed 100 pages.
The commission warned of action if the order was not obeyed.
In 2024, the petitioner lodged a non-compliance petition stating that the commission's order was not complied with. On Nov 19, the complaint petition came up for hearing before the chief election commissioner Md Shakeel Akhter.
PIO A Gomathi submitted that the reply was sent to the petitioner in Jan this year. Recording that the reply was sent much later than the deadline set by the commission, the chief commissioner directed the then PIO Anbazhagan to show cause why disciplinary action should not be initiated against him.
.JPG)
.JPG)
