[Assam] CIC rejects Govt stance on Russia correspondence papers

[Pradip Kumar Datta]

CIC rejects Govt stance on Russia correspondence papers
   
  SAYS DISMISSAL OF REQUEST IS AGAINST RTI SPIRIT
  

Press Release | 29 March 2007

In a landmark decision, Information Commissioner Dr OP Kejariwal has directed Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) to provide Mission Netaji the copies of their correspondence with the Soviets/Russians over the disappearance of Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose. The Commissioner also told the Ministry to take up the issue with the Russian Government if it feared that the disclosure would harm relations between the two nations.

  Click here for text of the CIC decision


The Central Information Commission (CIC) was prompted to take a tough stand following an appeal by Mission Netaji's Anuj Dhar. In August last year, Dhar had sought the information from the MEA. When it was denied, Dhar pleaded the matter before the Appellate Authority, MEA, in September last:

"It is not intelligible to me, and nor will it be to the people of India, as to how the disclosure of correspondence dealing with the disappearance of a national hero, whom the Government holds to have died in 1945, can be a threat to the 'security, strategic, scientific or economic interests of the State' in 2006?"

However, the MEA gave Dhar a short shrift, reiterating that "the requisite copies of correspondence cannot be disclosed as it involves relations with a foreign state". The MEA also played down Dhar's query whether the "MEA sought information from the Russians by issuing mere note verbales, or some serious efforts were ever made from a higher level to uncover the mystery surrounding the fate of one of the greatest Indians ever."

The MEA described the query as one seeking "anecdotal reply" and added that "the information sought" did "not constitute an 'information' as defined in the RTI Act, 2005". (See below) Full report here: http://www.missionnetaji.org/page/cic_decision_mea_russia.html

       
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