CIC awards Rs 1 lakh compensation to Rly job applicant

In the first case of its kind, the CIC has awarded compensation of Rs one lakh to an RTI applicant who was not informed about his marks in an examination conducted by the Railways.

New Delhi: In the first case of its kind,
the CIC has awarded compensation of Rs one lakh to an RTI
applicant who was not informed about his marks in an
examination conducted by the Railways.

The CIC also penalised the information officer of the
North-Eastern railways Rs 25,000 in the same case.

Applicant Majid Hussain had moved the CIC after his
repeated requests for information pertaining to the marks
obtained by him in the selection process conducted by the
North-Eastern Railway, Lucknow (2005-06), remained unanswered.

"The appellant has indeed suffered detriment in seeking
information which is critical for securing justice. The
respondent is, therefore, liable to pay a compensation of Rs
1,00,000 for all kinds of losses, including mental harassment,
career opportunities, etc suffered by the appellant,"
Information Commissioner, M M Ansari said.

The DRM, Lucknow, Ashok Kumar Singh is directed to
deduct Rs 25,000 from the salary of the Public Information
Officer, Jagdish, in five equal instalments of Rs 5,000 each,
with effect from February 2010, Ansari added while delivering
the order.

Ansari said that on the pretext of violation of service
rules, Hussain a graduate, was demoted as he was using his
Rights to know as to why he was discriminated against and
deprived of promotion.

The CIC had earlier issued a show-cause notice to the
North-Eastern railways in the case to explain their position.

PTI

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