RTI: ₹50,000 penalty imposed on four gram panchayat officials for delay in providing information

The Karnataka Information Commission’s Kalaburagi Bench has imposed a full punishment of ₹50,000 connected 1 Gram Panchayat Development Officer and 3 Gram Panchayat Secretaries for failing to furnish accusation wrong the stipulated clip nether the Right to Information (RTI) Act, 2005.

State Information Commissioner B. Venkata Singh passed the bid aft proceeding 2nd appeals filed by an applicant who had not received the requested accusation successful time. Despite directions issued nether Section 18(3)(a) and (d) of the RTI Act, 2005, and a informing of punishment nether Section 20(1), the officials failed to comply with the commission’s orders.

Accordingly, a punishment of ₹10,000 each was imposed connected Yankanagouda, Secretary of Tadabidi Gram Panchayat successful Wadagera taluk; Mallikarjun Nayak, Secretary of Gundagurthi Gram Panchayat; Ismail, Secretary of Saidapur Gram Panchayat successful Yadgir taluk; and Shivakumar Doddamani, Panchayat Development Officer of Tadar Gram Panchayat successful Harapanahalli taluk of Vijayanagara district.

In addition, Ismail was fined ₹10,000 each successful 2 abstracted cases, amounting to ₹20,000. The committee besides directed Yankanagouda to wage ₹3,000 arsenic compensation to the appellant for the hold successful providing information.

The penalties subordinate to 5 cases successful total. The officials person been directed to remit the punishment amounts and look earlier the committee astatine the adjacent hearing, with a informing issued against further non-compliance.