Netaji papers: CIC, govt on clash course

Central Information Commission asks  PMO to furnish classified documents

NEW DELHI: In a move that is bound to put the Centre in a spot and trigger a debate on whether the government should declassify old files, the Central Information Commission (CIC) has directed the UPA government to submit a list of secret papers on the death of Subhas Chandra Bose.

In a missive to the Centre, chief information commissioner Wajahat Habibullah has set a deadline of February 15 to comply with his request. The CIC was acting on behalf of Anuj Dhar, a citizen who had earlier sought the secret documents pertaining to Netaji’s disappearance but the PMO declined on the ground that “their disclosure will prejudicially affect relations with foreign countries”.

Seeking the classified documents in a sealed cover, Habibullah said he wanted to know if the PMO had exercised due diligence in arriving at its conclusions. He said after going through the documents, the material would be returned in a sealed condition.

Criticising the government’s reluctance to part with antiquated information, well-known historian Sumit Sarkar said, “There should be complete openness. There is absolutely no reason for the government to keep files secret.”

“Some countries declassify files after 30 years, I think it should be done even earlier. I suspect the motive of the government when it denies access to files.”

Noted RTI activist Arvind Kejriwal, however, said thanks to the RTI Act all files dating back to 20 years are now available for scrutiny subject to two conditions — it should not affect foreign relations or the security and integrity of the country. Saying that he is not for a blanket disclosure of files, Kejriwal said, “It depends from case to case.”

General secretary of the All India Forward Bloc Debabrata Biswas said, “I fail to understand how disclosure of this particular information would affect international relations. The world has changed, former foes have become friends and vice versa.”