The report on the 26/11 terror siege drafted by former union home secretary Ram Pradhan and V Balachandran, a former RAW official, will not be open for public scrutiny any time soon.
The state government marked this report as “classified” last week, keeping it out of bounds for the general public, including Right to Information (RTI) queries.
“It was made classified around four days back. This was done in public interest to ensure that the report does not have any negative impact on the ongoing trial against Mohammed Ajmal Amir Kasab Kasab,” said state home minister Jayant Patil.
Hindustan Times had first reported that the probe document would be made classified.
The 100-page report, accessed by the Hindustan Times, had found out cracks between the home department and the senior police brass. It also detailed how ill equipped the Mumbai police was to handle the terror attack.
As a classified document, it can now be accessed only by top bureaucrats like Chief Secretary Johny Joseph, Additional Home Secretary Chandra Iyengar and ministers including Chief Minister Ashok Chavan and state home minister Jayant Patil.
In the likelihood of a legal case, government officials can show the report to the judge but it cannot table it in court.
{{/usCountry}}In the likelihood of a legal case, government officials can show the report to the judge but it cannot table it in court.
{{/usCountry}}The report can be de-classified by the government, if it thinks that circumstances have changed and the document no longer poses any threat to security or public interest.
“We can make it public once the trial is over,’’ said Patil.