The Punjab and Haryana high court has sought response from the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) and Central Information Commission (CIC) on a plea challenging denial of information under the Right to Information Act (RTI) about the PM CARES Fund.
The Prime Minister’s Citizen Assistance and Relief in Emergency Situations Fund (PM CARES Fund) was created on March 27, 2020, following the Covid-19 outbreak in India. The stated purpose was to combat and contain the virus and undertake relief efforts during the present and future pandemics.
A Punjab lawyer, Nitin Mittoo, had sought information about the fund from the public information officer (PIO), PMO, under the RTI through online mode last year. On June 15, 2020, the PMO denied the information, solely on the ground that since it was related to PM CARES Fund, it does not fall under the ambit of public authority under the RTI Act, Mittoo stated in his petition before the high court (HC).
The plea seeks directions to the CIC to decide his second appeal filed under the RTI Act, which was registered on September 23, 2020, and is pending to date.
The HC bench of justice HS Madaan has sought a response from the CIC through the chief information commissioner, New Delhi; first appellate authority-cum-deputy secretary, PMO; and the PIO by January 6, 2022.
{{/usCountry}}The HC bench of justice HS Madaan has sought a response from the CIC through the chief information commissioner, New Delhi; first appellate authority-cum-deputy secretary, PMO; and the PIO by January 6, 2022.
{{/usCountry}}What info was sought
The lawyer had sought details about the cabinet resolution, other information related to advertisements put up about the fund and the money donated.
Since the PMO is a government authority, dealing with affairs of the said fund, then the same shall fall under the category of public authority, the petition claims, adding that PM CARES is a trust developed by the Prime Minister as the settler not in his personal capacity but in the capacity of the Prime Minister of India. Hence, information should be provided, it adds.
The petition further mentions that on June 30, 2020, he appealed before the first appellate authority, PMO, which upheld the PIO’s decision on August 20, 2020. On September 23, 2020, he appealed against it before the CIC. Reminders were sent on May 17 and June 30 this year, but the CIC has not decided the appeal, the petition states.
Seeking directions that the appeal be decided within the stipulated time of 30 days, Mittoo further said in his plea that the delay in deciding the appeal denies the right of the petitioner to justice.