’I was targeted because I questioned PM’s daughter’

Says a former DU student, who had filed RTI application against Manmohan's professor daughter. Now, he alleges, DU is asking him to pay Rs 5,000 as charges for the query made months ago

'I was targeted because I questioned PM's daughter'

Says a former DU student, who had filed RTI application against Manmohan's professor daughter. Now, he alleges, DU is asking him to pay Rs 5,000 as charges for the query made months ago

Seems the Delhi University (DU) is taking sides when it comes to answering queries through the Right To Information Act (RTI).

Months after Amitabh Amit, a civil servant and a former DU student, raised doubts about Prime Minister Manmohan Singh's daughter, Delhi University professor Upinder Singh, the varsity's public information officer has forwarded him a bill of Rs 5,000 to cover typing and photocopying costs to answer the question.

Delhi university's seemingly late realisation has surprised Amit.

"I am being victimised because I dared to question the PM's daughter. Or maybe, the Rs 5,000 fine, recently slapped on the principals of nine Delhi University colleges by the Central Information Commission is being transferred to candidates like me. I don't think I will be the last victim of such a practice. It seems the university is taking the RTI Act very lightly," said Amit.

"Even if you consider all the answers sent to me, they will not be more than eight to nine replies of four to five pages each. I don't know how they have charged me of Rs 5,000," said the RTI applicant.

Wrongly charged

Prominent RTI activists too find the charges illegal and uncalled for. They say charges should be levied before information is processed and not months later.

Reacting to the issue, RTI activist Arvind Kejriwal said, "What they are demanding is illegal. The concerned department has no right to ask for the outstanding amount." "I don't know how the university can charge an outstanding amount. Generally, the charge for an RTI reply is Rs 2 per page of information. However, in this case the Delhi University is asking for an amount for which the information has already been dispersed. This is illegal," said another RTI activist, Atul Kothari.

Fined principals
Recently, principals of nine Delhi University colleges were fined Rs 5,000 each for not complying with the Right To Information Act.

The Central Information Commission acted against the principals for not following Section 4 of the RTI Act, which mandates suo moto disclosure by public institutions regarding budget, rules, and name of its public information officer, among other things.

The commission said even four years after the RTI Act was passed, legal requirement under it have not been met by the colleges.

The story so far
In February this year, Amitabh Amit, a former Delhi University MA (History) student, sent the university's History Department a legal notice, saying he was being victimised for objecting to an "anti-culture" essay in the course.
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He had blamed two teachers. One of them is BP Sahu and the other Prime Minister Manmohan Singh's daughter, Professor Upinder Singh.

The formal student had told MiD DAY (in February) he scored poorly in two subjects because of his protests. He had said in one instance his marks were not added to his overall score because he was one of the students who had protested against the inclusion of AK Ramanujan's collection of essays Three Hundred Ramayanas in the History syllabus. The students were protesting against the alleged distortion of ancient Indian culture.

On October 9, Amit wrote to the university's information officer seeking answers to four questions about the irregularities in his marks. He alleged he was being victimised by the two teachers including Prof Singh.

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