Reported by Ashutosh Shukla in Dnaindia.com on Jul 14, 2012
Urgent public interest RTI pleas to get priority - Mumbai - DNA

Those filing Right to Information (RTI) application keeping the public interest in mind needn’t wait long for their queries to be answered.

If the public interest information they have sought is urgent, state chief information commissioner Ratnakar Gaikwad will give it priority. It will be up to Gaikwad to discern whichpublic interest appeals are urgent. At present, if an applicant files a second appeal at the information commission, he would have to wait for at least eight months. That too, only if Gaikwad continues to dispose of 400 appeals a month.

Gaikwad took the decision after an applicant wanting to know the expenses on dams and irrigations in Maharashtra complained to him about the delay in information. Activist Jeetendra Ghadge had sought to know how much money was spent on dams and irrigation projects in Vidarbha.

Gaikwad told Ghadge to talk to other activists filing public interest applications and submit the names to him.“The initiative is a short-term measure. After eight months, there will be no pending appeals and applications will be taken up within a week,” said Gaikwad.

When asked about his decison’s legal standing, Gaikwad said: “Even the courts do not take up matters chronologically. If they feel some matter needs to be heard on an urgent basis, it is taken up. Priority will also be given to senior citizens.Anyway, such appeals will not be more than 5%.”

Activists welcomed the move but sounded caution.

“In case of senior citizens, there have been instances where appeals are filed by children in their parent’s name,” said Bhaskar Prabhu, an activist.

Another RTI activist, Krishnaraj Rao, said: “I am cautiously optimistic.It is sometimes difficult to divide the RTI application that is in public interest but meant for private causes.”