HC orders notice to officials

A Division Bench of the Madras High Court today ordered notice to officials on a petition seeking information about police verification report of the 23 candidates selected in the direct recruitment to the post of District Judges (entry level) in 2013.
Notices would be sent to the officials including Chief Information Commissioner, Registrar General of Madras High Court and Public Information Officer, Madras High Court (Registrar-Administration).
The petitioner S Kathiresan, submitted that he sent his first application for the report on Nov 25, 2014. But there was no response.
He filed the second appeal to the CIC on February 21. But there was no reply for that too.

The act of information officials showed that they were not ready discharge their statutory duties, he contended. When he sought the copies of the application of the candidates, he was told that the RTI application had been sent to Assistant Public Information officer (Joint Registrar of High Court). But that also had not been disposed.
The PIO was liable to pay Rs 25,000 as penalty under RTI act, he contended.
He also said that the court should direct the CIC to dispose his petition within stipulated time. Besides the Registrar general should be directed to take disciplinary action against the registrar for his wilful failure to provide the information sought by him, he submitted.