JOIN USThe Karnataka Information Commission (KIC) has imposed a penalty of Rs 15,000 on the Ulsoor-based RBANMS Pre-University College Principal Muniraj for not furnishing information even after two-and-a-half years of filing an RTI application.
The penalty was imposed this year on June 26 based on an appeal by P Kalidas Reddy, resident of Ulsoor. The applicant had filed the RTI application in December 2011 regarding the constitution of management committee and its members, as stipulated under Section 42 of the Karnataka Education Act, 1983, which came into effect in 1997.
The Act mandates for each of the private and aided schools and colleges to have a management committee to look into the problems faced by the students and their fee structure.
The committee comprises the principal as convenor, board members of the schools and colleges, teachers and parents of at least two students. Every month, the committee should hold a meeting, says the rule.
However, a majority of schools in the City do not have management committees even after 17 years of the Act coming into being.
Skipped hearings
Being aided by the State government, the RBANMS PU College comes under the RTI Act.
However, even after 75 days, when no information was provided, the applicant approached the KIC.
When the matter came up for hearing on March 13, 2014, the KIC directed the principal, who is the Public Information Officer (PIO), to furnish information free of cost through RPAD. When the next hearing took place on June 26, the PIO remained absent.
Taking a serious view of the absenteeism of the principal, the Information Commissioner M R Pujar noted, “It is clear that the respondent has repeatedly remained absent for the Commission hearing, he has not provided information to the petitioner so far and not complied with the directions of the Commission and also not filed his written explanation for the show cause notice issued against him on September 27, 2012. Hence, the Commission has come to the conclusion that it is a fit case to impose penalty.”
The commission has also directed Muniraj to pay a compensation of Rs 2,000 to the applicant for denying information despite many hearings and repeated directions.