The Tribune: Gurgaon: Wednesday, 2nd September
2026.
The Commission has also recommended to send Batth for training at Haryana Institute of Public Administration to sensitise him on statutory compliance, institutional discipline
R S Batth, the DTP
(Enforcement) official who has emerged as the celebrated face of GMDA’s
demolition drives against encroachment in Gurugram, has been fined Rs 25,000 by
the Haryana State Information Commission for a four-year delay in furnishing
information under the RTI Act.
Beyond the fine, the Commission has also recommended under Section 25(5) that the Additional Chief Secretary, Town & Country Planning, send Batth for training at the Haryana Institute of Public Administration (HIPA) to sensitise him on statutory compliance and institutional discipline.
In the orders, State Information Commissioner Dr Ajay Kumar Sura held that Batth then SPIO-cum-District Town Planner (HQ) at the Directorate of Town & Country Planning, and now posted at GMDA had “persistently” failed to comply with the Commission’s directions and repeatedly skipped hearings despite being issued a show-cause notice as far back as August 2023.
The penalty stems from an RTI application filed on January 4, 2022, seeking details of the rules, policies and guidelines governing part-occupation and occupation certificates for group housing licences sanctioned between 2007 and 2016. The Commission had first directed complete, point-wise information to be furnished within two weeks on July 13, 2023, a direction Batth did not comply with, prompting the show-cause notice.
In his written reply, Batth had argued that relevant Acts, Rules and the Haryana Building Code 2017 were available on the department’s website. The Commission rejected this explanation as “fundamentally misconceived,” holding that an SPIO “cannot substitute a general reference to statutes, rules or a departmental website for a reasoned and point-wise response” to information specifically sought.
Calling the four-year delay “extraordinary” and citing Batth’s repeated non-appearance despite specific orders requiring his presence, the Commission invoked Section 20(1) of the RTI Act to impose the penalty, to be recovered from his salary or, if applicable, his pension.
The Commission has separately directed that appellant be allowed to inspect records pertaining to the disputed information within a month, with the concerned SPIOs required to file a compliance report within 45 days.
The Commission has also recommended to send Batth for training at Haryana Institute of Public Administration to sensitise him on statutory compliance, institutional discipline
Beyond the fine, the Commission has also recommended under Section 25(5) that the Additional Chief Secretary, Town & Country Planning, send Batth for training at the Haryana Institute of Public Administration (HIPA) to sensitise him on statutory compliance and institutional discipline.
In the orders, State Information Commissioner Dr Ajay Kumar Sura held that Batth then SPIO-cum-District Town Planner (HQ) at the Directorate of Town & Country Planning, and now posted at GMDA had “persistently” failed to comply with the Commission’s directions and repeatedly skipped hearings despite being issued a show-cause notice as far back as August 2023.
The penalty stems from an RTI application filed on January 4, 2022, seeking details of the rules, policies and guidelines governing part-occupation and occupation certificates for group housing licences sanctioned between 2007 and 2016. The Commission had first directed complete, point-wise information to be furnished within two weeks on July 13, 2023, a direction Batth did not comply with, prompting the show-cause notice.
In his written reply, Batth had argued that relevant Acts, Rules and the Haryana Building Code 2017 were available on the department’s website. The Commission rejected this explanation as “fundamentally misconceived,” holding that an SPIO “cannot substitute a general reference to statutes, rules or a departmental website for a reasoned and point-wise response” to information specifically sought.
Calling the four-year delay “extraordinary” and citing Batth’s repeated non-appearance despite specific orders requiring his presence, the Commission invoked Section 20(1) of the RTI Act to impose the penalty, to be recovered from his salary or, if applicable, his pension.
The Commission has separately directed that appellant be allowed to inspect records pertaining to the disputed information within a month, with the concerned SPIOs required to file a compliance report within 45 days.
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