NEWS: RTI looking for details of Tea Shop of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Father: Central Information Commission (CIC) instructs Central Public Information Officer (CPIO) Western Railway to file a document stating that no data are existing

By Legal Wires 5 Minutes Read

The Central Information Commission (CIC) placed a 2^nd appeal filed by an advocate who, through RTI, requested the details about the tea store of Damodar Das, the father of Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

2 years ago, Pawan Parik, an RTI Activist and an attorney practicing in Haryana Courts had lodged an RTI application before Central Public Information Officer (CPIO), Western Railway, looking for data on 11 points on the tea shop said to be performed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s father. One question was about the rent period of the tea stall or shop. Pawan aspired to know when the license or permit for that tea stall or shop was announced? He also sought licensed copies of the appropriate documents in this context. As he did not get any reply, he lodged his 1^st Appeal. Arguing that the authority was not determining the First Appeal, he headed to the Central Information Commission (CIC).

The Central Public Information Officer (CPIO), Western Railway, in answer to this Appeal, argued that no RTI application and First Appeal was obtained by it before 17th June 2020 (when he got it along with second appeal notification). It further presented that the information sought by the applicant was too outdated, and the Ahemdabad Division retained no history of that period.

Information Commissioner Amita Pandove then placed the second Appeal instructing the authority to file a document with the Commission deposing that he did not obtain RTI submission and first Appeal before 17.06.2020. It also instructed the authority to file a new affidavit asserting that no background relating to data sought on point numbers. 1 to 11 of the RTI submission is available with it.

In 2016, the ‘RTI Activist’ had lodged a second appeal before the Commission unhappy with response he got from the Prime Minister office to his RTI Plea concerning the poll assurances made by the Prime Minister of ‘depositing Rs. 15 lakhs into each citizen’s bank account. That Appeal was settled by the Commission, seeing that the response by Prime Minister office was adequate.

In 2014, Pawan requested through RTI info regarding when the human remains of Emperor Prithviraj Chauhan shall be given to India from Afghanistan & also the make a copy of the letters or emails of the Government of India, Afghanistan in the issue, etc.

In 2017, he lodged an RTI before the CBI in which he requested data regarding the acquittal of Amit Shah in the Sohrabuddin Sheikh encounter case. The committee rejected his second Appeal examining that view of the applicant about ‘human rights breach is no base to disturb right to information under the provision to Sec. 24(1) of RTI Act. Just because Appellant is of the view that CBI’s flop to Appeal against the release order of Amit Shah sums to human rights breach of the kith and kin of Sohrabuddin Sheikh, the provision to Section 24(1) of RTI Act will not turn out to be effective, the Commission had stated in that case.

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