Justice C.V. Bhadang of the Bombay High Court at Goa on Thursday fixed for December 10, the final hearing of the petition filed by the Goa Raj Bhavan claiming that it is not a Public Authority (PA) and does not come within the purview of the Right to Information (RTI) Act.
The High Court, on Thursday, simultaneously, stayed till December 10 the order passed by the Goa Chief Information Commissioner holding that the Governor’s Secretariat at Goa Raj Bhavan was a Public Authority and comes within the purview of the RTI Act.
The Raj Bhavan has challenged the order passed by the GCIC October 15, who while disposing a petition filed by advocate Aires Rodrigues had upheld the earlier orders of the Commission holding that the Governor’s Secretariat at Goa Raj Bhavan was a PA and comes within the purview of the RTI Act.
Mr. Rodrigues on Thursday submitted before Mr. Bhadang that with the exception of Goa all the other Raj Bhavans across the country and even the Rastrapathi Bhavan are complying with the RTI Act and that instead of strengthening the transparency law, the Goa Raj Bhavan has allowed it to be weakened.
Mr. Rodrigues in his application on October 19 to the Public Information Officer at the Goa Raj Bhavan had sought information on details of official and unofficial tours and trips within India and overseas by the Governor and her family from the day she assumed office as Governor on August 31, 2014 to date and paid for by Goa Government or Raj Bhavan. This included the total expenditure incurred on each of the tour and trip, details of guests including VIPs, VVIPs and others who stayed at the Raj Bhavan in that period and the expenditure incurred on each such guest during their stay giving break up expenditure on stay, food, travel and the details of vehicles purchased for the Raj Bhavan in that period with expenditure incurred on the purchase of each of the vehicle.
On a complaint filed by Mr. Rodrigues the then State Chief Information Commissioner Motilal Keny on March 31, 2011 had ruled that the Secretariat of Goa Governor was a PA and came within the ambit of the RTI Act.
Later dismissing the appeal filed by the Goa Raj Bhavan against the order of the GSIC, the Bombay High Court at Goa in a landmark 58-page judgment pronounced on November 14, 2011, also ruled that the Secretariat of the Governor of Goa was a PA and was bound to furnish information sought under the RTI Act.
The Goa Raj Bhavan later challenged before the Supreme Court the Bombay High Court judgment. A Division Bench of the Supreme Court comprising of Justices Arun Mishra and Amitava Roy on January 30 dismissed the Special Leave Petition filed by the Goa Raj Bhavan.