As citizens hail Devendra Fadnavis for his enthusiasm for bringing out a Right to Services Act, an eminent activist has written to the Chief Minister, saying he need not come out with a new Act as there is one already and it only needs strict implementation.
The Government Servants Regulation Of Transfers And Prevention Of Delay In Discharge Of Official Duties Act, 2005 (Act 21 of 2006), which is being termed as Right to Services Act by activist, has been around for a while, according to former central information commissioner Shailesh Gandhi. The previous government had brought rules for it in November 2013.
“Everything, including the citizen’s charter, exist in the Act. He should just say that I will hold the top man responsible if the Act is not implemented. Rest will fall in line. At the end, implementation matters. If they implement this Act, the face of governance will change in five years,” said Gandhi, who has written to the CM on this.
Sections of the Act mandate fixed tenure of officers, requires all departments to make a citizen's charter, and sets a 45-day deadline for action on a file. It also states that in case a matter requires consultation with other departments, decisions must be done within 90 days.
“If decisions are not taken within the specified period, it talks of disciplinary action against the responsible officer in a time-bound manner. This means no officer can delay the response to a citizen’s application, representation or complaint for over 90 days. This also covers decision-making with respect to all government working and is a powerful act which could have as much impact on governance as the Right to Information Act,” said Gandhi.
He added, “Some bureaucrats say there needs to be a commission for this. When Modi asked officers to come on time, there was no need for a commission or separate body. Today, scores of corruption cases are pending for approval to prosecute beyond the time limit of 90 days. This is a violation of Transfers and Delays Act. Even if they feel something stronger is needed, they can bring in rules and the Act can come later. The new CM has a great opportunity to capitalise on the issue.”
Not all activists agree with Gandhi. “It is better if he is getting a new Act that has penal provision. We are calling for some inputs from people on this," said activist Vijay Kumbhar, who will be writing to the CM.
Others feel the Centre should come out with the stringent Right of Citizens for time bound delivery of Goods and Services and Redressal of their Grievances Bill, 2011. “If the central government can implement this Act, it will be applicable across India and will also have some uniformity," said Bhaskar Prabhu, another activist.
Dna tried contacting Devendra Fadnavis, but the CM was not available for comment.
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