New Delhi, April 14 (Inditop.com) The Central Information Commission (CIC) has expressed its “distress at the extraordinary slow methods” of the Delhi government in acting on a probe into a decades-old embezzlement case.
The observation came during an appeal filed by one Dharam Raj, who had sought details under the Right to Information (RTI) Act on the probe into the embezzlement of funds in the Delhi government’s culture department. Not satisfied with the information provided, he approached the CIC, which heard the matter April 9.
“The appellant states that he had sought information regarding a complaint filed on embezzlement of funds in 1996. The complaint has been filed with ACB (Anti-Corruption Branch). The ACB, after four years sent a report to the directorate of vigilance (DOV), Delhi government. The inquiry report had been prepared on 30 July, 1999 and was sent to DOV on 6 October, 2000. This highlights the extreme speed with which a department like anti-corruption functions,” information commission Shailesh Gandhi said in his order.
“After that, this report has been slowly moved over a period of years to the Art, Culture and Language Department (of Delhi government) for taking action. The Art, Culture and Language Department will probably take some decades to decide the matter. If there is no subsistence in the allegation, perhaps an honest man is being vilified,” Gandhi said.
“And if there has been an actual embezzlement of public funds, the various departments by their well rehearsed slow dance movements are effectively colluding in ensuring that no action has been taken against the guilty. From the information before the commission, it is evident that ACB itself fist took three years to conduct the inquiries and then kept the report for over a year before forwarding it to the vigilance department,” he further said.
The information commissioner said that from the details given to Dharam Raj by the vigilance department, it appeared that the report was sent to the principal secretary of the art, culture and language department on January 10, 2001.
“Before parting with this matter, the commission expresses its distress at the extraordinary slow methods in which inquiries are conducted and inaction becomes the primary characteristic of such events,” Gandhi noted.
He also directed the ACB to provide a photocopy of the complete inquiry report to Dharam Raj before April 20, 2010.
The art, culture and language department was also directed to inform Dharam Raj about the date on which it received the report from the vigilance department, give him a copy of the vigilance report and photocopies of all correspondence and file notings in the matter.
“If no action has been taken on the vigilance report, this should be stated,” Gandhi said.
Speaking to IANS, Dharam Raj said: “No action has been taken on the report for the last 10 years. What can a common man do when the government works so slowly? I am depressed and don’t know what to do. I will approach court once I get the complete inquiry report to bring the culprits to book.”
