CIC fines Indian Overseas Bank PIO for not providing information under RTI

Source :Moneylife Digital :January 19, 2012 04:04 PM

AK Mohanty, chief manager and deemed PIO of Indian Overseas Bank was fined Rs12,000 for delay in providing information to a RTI user while AP Singh, general manager, Board Services Department has been served a show-cause notice by the CIC for similar reasons


The banking sector has been consistent in stonewalling Right to Information (RTI) activists from getting information. But a recent Central Information Commission (CIC) ruling gives hopes to the activists, by pulling up a bank for not providing information about non-performing assets, penalising the public information officer and issuing a show-cause notice to another top official for non-compliance with CIC orders and delaying disclosure. 





Central Information Commissioner Shailesh Gandhi has imposed a penalty of Rs12,000 on AK Mohanty, chief manager and deemed PIO of Indian Overseas Bank for not providing information to RTI user Kishanlal Mittal until 48 days after the CIC directed him to do so. For the same reason, AP Singh, general manager, Board Services Department has been served a show-cause notice to appear before the CIC on 16th February and answer why penalty under Section 20(1) should not be levied on him.


“The Commission notes that AK Mohanty, CM & deemed PIO was responsible for not sending the information to the appellant before 10 October 2011, as per the order of the Commission. He sent the information to the appellant only on 29 November 2011. Since the delay in providing the information has been of 48 days, the Commission is passing an order penalizing AK Mohanty Rs12,000 (Rs250 per day),” said the CIC ruling.


In September 2010, Mr Mittal filed an RTI application seeking information on loans forwarded to educational institutes above Rs25 crore. He also wanted to know how many of these loans have been classified as NPAs (non-performing assets) and how many have been written off, and demanded file notings on the decision taken in this matter. 


The PIO, Mr Mohanty refused disclosure claiming that the information is voluminous, uncentralised and will tax the resources of the bank; and that the information is exempt from disclosure because it violates the fiduciary relationship, the bank has with its clients. 
Not satisfied with the response, Mr Mittal went for an appeal before the CIC on 16 September 2011. While the commission upheld the exemption under the ‘fiduciary relationship’ clause, it ordered the PIO to provide the details of the NPAs sought by the RTI user. However, the information did not reach the appellant, and on November, he complained to the CIC about the delay. 

A show-cause notice was served to the PIO for appearing before the CIC on 13th January. During the hearing, it was revealed that Mr Mohanty had obtained the information from the department concerned on 22nd September itself. “Mr. Mohanty states he did not send the information since he was waiting to receive the information on a query from the Board Services Department. This is no reasonable cause and the deemed PIO Mr Mohanty should have sent the information on the other two queried to the appellant before 10 November 2011 as per the order of the Commission,” Mr Gandhi said in his ruling.


The CIC thus served a show-cause notice to AP Singh, general manager of Board Services Department, whom Mr Mohanty alleges of not providing the required information. “The Commission is duty-bound to levy a penalty at the rate of Rs250 each day till the information is furnished. Once the Commission decides that there was no reasonable cause for delay, it has to impose the penalty and the law gives no discretion in the matter. The burden of proving that denial of information by the PIO was justified and reasonable is clearly on the PIO,” said Mr Gandhi.