CUTTACK: The Orissa High Court has quashed the Odisha Information Commission’s order imposing fine of Rs 12,750 on a former controller of examination of Board of Secondary Education, Odisha over a 51-day delay in supplying information to an applicant under RTI Act.
The petition challenging the Commission’s order was filed around 13 years ago. The applicant, Prasanna Kumar Mishra had sought information regarding answer scripts of history, geography and third language Sanskrit under RTI when Dr Ardhendu Sekhar Bhol was controller of examination from November 13, 2007 to October 1, 2008. The Commission had imposed the fine on Bhol in an order issued on August 24, 2011 after which he challenged it in the high court.
While quashing the Commission’s order, the single judge bench of Justice KR Mohapatra on April 5 said, “It appears that the Commission has misread the show cause reply of the petitioner. The petitioner in his show cause reply has clarified that he was not responsible/conferred with the power/responsibility to supply the information sought for. There is nothing on record to show that the information sought for was routed through the petitioner for its supply. In that view of the matter, this court feels that the impugned order is not sustainable being violative of principles of natural justice and non-consideration of materials on record.”
According to the high court order, Bhol had in his reply to the Commission’s show cause notice clarified that he was in no way responsible to supply the penalty as he was neither the public information officer (PIO) nor the referral PIO. The entire records from which information was sought for were in the custody of the secretary and president of BSE, Odisha.
Bhol said he was only responsible for conducting the examination. He further clarified that the answer scripts had got damaged in the rain. As a result, there was a delay in supply of the evaluated answer scripts by the Board.