RTI to the rescue

[ganpat1956]

It took a strong dose of the Right to Information (RTI) Act for 62-year-old Shivlal Pethad to wake the BMC from its slumber.

With the help of the Act, he not only managed to get his bungalow transferred in his name, but has filed another application under the RTI Act to nail the BMC for causing him harassment.

His battle

Pethad’s woes began on October 24, 2005, when he applied for transfer of the bungalow at Dattaguru Society, Deonar, in his name. Soon after, the BMC sent a surveyor for inspection.

Pethad said, “I showed the officer all relevant documents and he expressed satisfaction.” But that didn’t help much. He was made to run from pillar to post for seven months after which he received a letter from the BMC informing him the transfer had to be put on hold as he did not have a property card.

He then consulted lawyers who told him that the transfer could not be shelved on the grounds cited by the BMC.

He added, “I sought from the civic body details of transfers in Dattaguru society in the last decade and whether property cards were produced in all the cases.”

The reply he got was not a certified one, but mentioned that most transfers took place without property cards. He filed another application seeking information on recent transfers and demanded the reply be certified by the BMC.

On November 8, he was pleasantly surprised when the civic body sent him his transfer certificate. “I was stunned to see the transfer made in my name,” he said.

[Source: MidDay, Nov.18,2006]

[crusader]

This is really good Success story! Thanks for sharing.