RTI Happenings: Rodrigues challenges Padwal’s appointment

[akhilesh yadav]

Rodrigues challenges Padwal’s appointment


Reported by thehindu.com on August 22,2012
The Hindu : NATIONAL / KARNATAKA : Rodrigues challenges Padwal

The controversy over appointment of retired Deputy Director of Health Services Pradeep Padwal as Information Commissioner of Goa continues to simmer as right to information (RTI) activist and lawyer Aires Rodrigues on Tuesday filed a public interest petition challenging the appointment.


The petition was mentioned for an early hearing on Tuesday and it will come up for hearing before a Division Bench on Thursday.


Stating that Dr. Padwal did not have any knowledge and experience of law, the petitioner submitted that the State Information Commissioner had to discharge judicial and quasi judicial functions and he should have a judicial
approach with vast knowledge and experience of law. Pointing out that Section 15 of the RTI Act specified that the State Information Commissioner should be a person of eminence in public life, the petitioner drew the attention of the High Court that a vigilance case was pending against Dr. Padwal for doing, while on duty as Medical Inspector of Factories, a full-time postgraduate diploma course in occupational health without obtaining permission and without applying any study leave.


Alleging that the appointment of Dr. Padwal was arbitrary, the petitioner submitted that despite other candidates possessing judicial and legal experience, yet a person with no legal knowledge and experience of law had been appointed to a judicial post by the government and without any consultation with the High Court.


The petitioner stated that the Supreme Court which is considering the constitutional validity of Section 15(5) of the RTI Act, had by an interim order on July 19, restrained any further appointment of information commissioners by the Centre.


Claiming that the appointment had not been notified in the official gazette as was needed, the petitioner sought a writ of quo warranto requiring the government to show under what authority Dr. Padwal had been appointed as the State Information Commissioner and to quash and set aside his appointment. Pending the hearing and final disposal of the petition, the petitioner sought that the incumbent be restrained from functioning as the State Information Commissioner.

After educationist Pandurang Nadkarni backed out of the race for State Information Commissioner following a campaign by the RTI activist accusing him of misleading information in bio-data and for not having legal knowledge, the government on July 19 appointed Dr. Padwal, who took over as State Information Commissioner on August 10.

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High court adjourns plea against Padwal by 2 weeks

Reported by timesofindia.indiatimes.com on Sep 11, 2012
High court adjourns plea against Padwal by 2 weeks - The Times of India

PANAJI: The high court of Bombay at Goa has adjourned by two weeks the hearing of the petition challenging the appointment of Pradeep Padwal as the Goa State Information Commissioner (GSIC).


When the petition came up for hearing on Monday, advocate general (AG) Atmaram Nadkarni informed the court that a petition pertaining to the issue of appointment of a chief information commissioner is before theSupreme Court of India and therefore the present petition could be adjourned until theApex Court passes its final judgment on the issue.


A division bench comprising Justice S A Bobde and Justice U V Bakre accepted the AG's statement and adjourned the hearing by two weeks.


The petitioner, advocate Aires Rodrigues, has stated that Padwal had retired as deputy director of health services and that he did not have any knowledge and experience of law. The state information commissioner having to necessarily discharge judicial and quasi judicial functions was required to have a judicial approach with vast knowledge and experience of law, Rodrigues has stated in the petition.


Rodrigues has submitted that if Section 15 (5) of the RTI Act was interpreted as not requiring knowledge and experience in law then it would be violative of Articles 14, 16, 19 (1) (g) and 50 of the Constitution of India.
The petitioner has prayed for quashing and setting aside the Padwal's appointment and also for restraining him from functioning as the GSIC during the pendency of the petition.

[akhilesh yadav]

SIC Padwal quits post SC blow

Reported by timesofindia,indiatimes.com on Sep 14, 2012
SIC Padwal quits post SC blow - The Times of India

PANAJI: State information commissioner (SIC) Pradeep Padwal resigned from the post on Thursday shortly after a Supreme Court ruling that information commissioners should have judicial backgrounds.

The ruling comes as a setback to chief minister Manohar Parrikar's choice of SIC for the second time around. He has repeatedly maintained that an SIC need not have legal knowledge.

Speaking to TOI, Padwal said, "Yes, I have resigned from the state information commissioner post with immediate effect in view of the Supreme Court ruling. It could have been argued that my appointment was before the apex court ruling, but I am clear with my decision. I am not there (as SIC) from tomorrow."

Parrikar's previous SIC candidate, former chairman of Goa board of secondary and higher secondary education Pandurang Nadkarni, informed the government on June 22 that he was not interested in the post after social activist Aires Rodrigues challenged his appointment.

Rodrigues, who also challenged Padwal's appointment, this time in the high court of Bombay at Goa, has maintained that an SIC should have wide knowledge and experience of law as required by Section 15(5) of the Right to Information (RTI) Act.

While challenging Nadkarni's appointment, he had alleged that the Bharatiya Bhasha Suraksha Manch leader was close to BJP leaders. Padwal took charge as SIC on August 9 after his appointment in July.

Earlier this week, the high court adjourned Rodrigues' SIC hearing in view of a similar petition being heard in the apex court.

Padwal told TOI, "There's a case in the high court and I don't want the government to be in an embarrassing situation because of me." He said he had applied for the post after the government had advertised for it and was selected. "There is no fault of mine in the case," he stressed.

Goa People's Forum convener Satish Sonak has written to the chief minister seeking an amendment to the RTI Act in view of the apex court order.