HEARING ON GOA GOVERNOR’S PLEA AGAINST RTI ADJOURNED TO 6TH JUNE

PANJIM: A Division bench of the Bombay High Court at Goa comprising of Justice S. C. Dharmadhikari and Justice F.M.Reis today adjourned to 6th June hearing on the the petition filed by Goa’s Raj Bhavan against the Right to Information Act.

When the matter came up for hearing today Adv. Mahesh Sonak appearing on behalf of Goa Raj Bhavan today told the court that he was not ready and prepared with all the arguments to the objections raised by Raj Bhavan in its petition.

The High Court today directed that all the issues would have to be addressed and argued on 6th June and that the petition would be decided on that day at admission stage itself.

Adv. Aires Rodrigues today submitted to the Court that there was urgency in hearing the petition as the very important Right to Information Act which was enacted for transparency and accountability was sought to be violated by the constitutional head of the State.

Adv. Rodrigues further told the court that it was an irony that in Goa the politicians over the years have been circumventing the Anti Defection law while the Goa Governor was trying to find loopholes to dodge the Right to Information Act.

The petition filed by Goa Governor Dr. S.S.Sidhu’s Special Secretary Dr. N. Radhakrishnan before the High Court challenges the 31st March order of the Goa State Information Commission which had directed the Raj Bhavan to furnish Adv. Aires Rodrigues within 30 days theinformation sought by him under the Right to Information Act.

The State Chief Information Commissioner Mr. Motilal Keny in his order had ruled that the Goa Governor was a “Public Authority” and does come within the ambit of the Right to Information Act.

Adv. Aires Rodrigues’s complaint against Goa Governor Dr. Sidhu follows the stand taken by the Goa Raj Bhavan that the Governor was not a public authority and did not come within the purview of the RTI Act.

Adv. Rodrigues had sought from Goa Raj Bhavan under the RTI Act details of action taken on the complaints made by him to the Governor of Goa against Advocate General of Goa Mr. Subodh Kantak. Adv. Rodrigues had also sought copies of noting sheets and correspondence pertaining to the processing of his complaints against the Advocate General of Goa.

Dr. S.S. Sidhu is the only Governor in the country who was not complying with the RTI Act by claiming that he was not a “Public Authority”.