TN governor barnala

Raj Bhavan’s refusal to share information irks RTI activists
Mahalingam PonnusamyMahalingam Ponnusamy, TNN | Aug 16, 2011, 07.19AM IST


CHENNAI: Three separate Right to Information petitions filed with the Raj Bhavan here have received responses stating that "the requested information is not available in this office," irking the activists concerned.

While one wanted to know if the governor had a special quota in state-owned universities and in job placements in government offices, another sought information pertaining to any business transactions between universities and companies owned by the son of Tamil Nadu governor Surjit Singh Barnala and the third demanded information about visitors to Raj Bhavan.

C Arul Ramalingam, who sought information on any special quota for the governor in universities and in placements at government offices, said, "The reply from Raj Bhavan simply said that information requested was not available." He had also asked, in the same petition, for copies of the oaths taken by the governor and chief minister but didn't get them, he said. "According to the State Records Act, copies of the oath must be sent to libraries and museums," Ramalingam added.

V Gopalakrishnan, another RTI activist who wanted to know the business transactions between universities and companies owned by the Governor's son, said: "As per Section 6 (3) of the RTI Act, if the recipient of an RTI query does not have the necessary information, he has to direct it to the department concerned. But if officials in Raj Bhavan don't forward such queries to those concerned than how can those in smaller offices follow ?" "We have strong evidence about the transactions, but we want to know whether the governor is aware since he is the chancellor of universities in the state," Gopalakrishnan added.