Former chief justice of India KG Balakrishnan, facing allegations of corruption after his family members reportedly amassed wealth disproportionate to their known sources of income, told the income tax officials here that he cannot disclose his assets to the public as the information could be misused, an activist said on Monday.
P Balachandran, an RTI activist who had approached the income tax department seeking details of Balakrishnan's wealth, said the former chief justice had filed an affidavit through his lawyer to the tax authorities saying he cannot disclose his assets and all relevant details were already put up on the Supreme Court website.
Balachandran had asked for the permanent account number (PAN) and details of the former chief justice's bank accounts.
In his affidavit, Balakrishnan said that these details should not be given out because they could be misused and the money in his bank accounts could be fraudulently withdrawn.
Speaking to the media in here, Balachandran said Balakrishnan was not being transparent.
"If he was, why should he backtrack after initially agreeing to disclose all the details? We will now approach the higher officials in the RTI department," Balachandran said.