Is state govt ready to launch RTI portal, asks high court

Is state govt ready to launch RTI portal, asks high court

TIMES NEWS NETWORK

Ahmedabad:16.11.2021

The Gujarat high court on Monday questioned the state government on whether it is ready to launch a portal through which citizens can file applications seeking information under the Right to Information (RTI) Act and asserted that the government can work out modalities later.

The bench headed by Chief Justice Aravind Kumar asked the government to reply to its question on Wednesday. The court’s query came in response to two PILs filed three years ago, demanding online processing of RTI applications and to create a payment gateway for those who seek information online.

Appearing for a petitioner, senior advocate Saurabh Soparkar submitted that the petitioner wants RTI applications to be processed online through a portal. The Centre and other states have already started accepting RTI applications through portals. He questioned why a developed state like Gujarat cannot do it. He termed the affidavit filed by the state government irrelevant and submitted that the government has taken three years on pretext of awarding contract to companies for the purpose of creating systems on how to track files with regard to RTI applications. “I want RTI application to be filed online and a payment gateway to pay fees, nothing more and nothing less. I do not desire to track the files in government department,” he submitted.

The state government submitted that the process of finalizing the system is underway. To this, the chief justice said whether the concerned government secretary can state on an affidavit that he would receive all RTI applications online. “We want a three-line answer whether you are ready to process RTI applications online or not? We do not want all details. The moment you enter in all those details, it will be surrounded by mystery,” the judge sought reply after two days.

After the senior advocate submitted that there are government agencies who want to set up payment gateway for free , another petitioner-advocate Sandeep Munjyasara drew the court’s attention on how the state government has taken three years to make a clear statement on this issue.