Ex-info chief Ramanand Tiwari property details in a month

The RTI (Right to Information) order on property details of former information commissioner (Mumbai) Ramanand Tiwari, former state chief information commissioner, Suresh Joshi and former state election commissioner V Lal is out and the applicant will have to wait another month for details.

State chief information commissioner, Vilas Patil passed an order that the public information officer (PIO) and the first appellate authority (FAA) should let the commissioners concerned have their say and give the decision in a month’s time. The commissioner cites section 11 (1) of the RTI Act, which refers to third party privacy, for the same.

The order, passed on April 13, came after directives from the high court that it be heard in four weeks’ time.

Applicant Vihar Durve had approached the court since his application, pending since November 2008, was yet to be heard.

In the order, the commissioner states that while the details given of the three were in their capacity as IAS officers, he argues that the information sought was, technically while they were commissioners.

“He should have directed the PIO to furnish me the property declarations of all the concerned persons. He has invoked the third party clause when there was no need of it. They have submitted the documents officially to the general administration department and hence, they are in the public domain,” said Durve.