Jammu and Kashmir High Court Tuesday closed a Public Interest Litigation, seeking decision on pleas which were pending before the erstwhile State Information Commission (SIC).
The division bench ofJustice Ali Muhammad Magrey and Justice D S Thakur disposed of the PIL aftersenior additional advocate general B A Dar informed the Court that theauthorities were in the process of framing rules on the issue raised in thepetition.
The government will evolvea mechanism for dealing with the cases pending before the erstwhile StateInformation Commission, which was abolished in terms of Jammu and KashmirReorganization Act-2019, as expeditiously as possible, Dar informed the Court.
After his statement, theCourt observed that no useful purpose could be achieved by keeping the petitionpending.
While closing the PIL, theCourt directed the J&K government to do the needful with regard to thegrievance projected by the petitioners as undertaken by the senior AAG.
On December 11 last year,the Court had asked the government to respond to the PIL filed by three lawstudents- Muhammad Khurram, Abrar Reyaz Sofi and Muhammad Haris Mir, in twoweeks.
The petitioners hadpleaded that on 31 October 2019, J&K Right to Information Act was repealedunder the J&K Reorganization Act which led to abolishing of StateInformation Commission/Second Appellate Authority.
“As many as 364 appealsand complaints were pending in the commission when the Commission wasabolished,” they said, pleading there was no information regarding status ofthe pending applications.
“The fundamental right toinformation of hundreds of applicants under the Right to Information law issuspended as they are left with no authority to approach for their appeals orcomplaints,” the petitioners said.
The petitioners pleadedthey intended to submit the second appeal to the SIC but the commission wasabolished.
“The statutory period of90 days to submit the second appeal ended on November 8 – eight days afterclosure of the Commission,” they said.
The petitioners pleadedthat J&K Re-organisation Act provides that a pending proceeding before anycourt, tribunal, authority or officer in the erstwhile state of J&K wouldbe transferred to the corresponding court, tribunal, authority or officer ofthe UT of J&K after the enforcement of the Act.
The government, thepetitioners, said, has not taken any decision whether the pending RTIapplications would be transferred to the Central Information Commission or anyother authority.
“Even if the CentralInformation Commission is to replace the State Information Commission, thischange has not been notified by the government to public,” they pleaded.
The petitioners said ifthe applications were adjudicated by the Central Information Commission underthe Central RTI Act, it would “snatch away the pre-existent legal right” of theapplicants of getting their applications disposed of within a maximum 120 days.
“Thus, giving aretrospective effect to the central Act in this regard would take away thisstatutory right of the applicants, given to them under the state Act,” theypleaded.
The petitioners had soughtto know as to whether the Central Information Commission would observe 60 and120 days time limit to dispose of the cases, if transferred to it.
On 28 November, thegovernment constituted a 5-member panel headed by Secretary GAD to examinewhether J&K Union Territory will come under the purview of CentralInformation Commission or a separate Commission has to be constituted for theUT.