Chandigarh, September 22
The Punjab State Information Commission today ordered that the IPS officers serving in the state would have to provide copies showing their assets to anyone who sought these under the Right to Information Act.

Taking up a case moved by RTI activist and Punjab and Haryana High Court advocate HC Arora, state information commissioner Surinder Singh today directed the public information officer of the DGP office, Punjab, to supply to the appellant copies of returns of assets of all IPS officers, serving in connection with affairs of the state government, except those who have retired or who have gone on central deputation.

Arora had, in his application filed on February 13, 2009, requested the PIO of the Chief Secretary’s office to inform him as to how many of the IPS/IAS officers had submitted their statements of assets; he had also requested the PIO to supply the copies of latest details of assets submitted to the government by all IPS/IAS officers, and also copies of their returns submitted at the time of joining service.

The chief secretary’s office forwarded Arora’s request to the DGP office where the public information officers declined to provide the requisite information to Arora, contending that the information sought by him was exempted to be given under Section 8(1) (h) of the RTI Act. “This section states that giving out such information would amount to unwarranted invasion of privacy of individual,” said Arora.

The first appeal against the orders was dismissed by the additional DGP in April 2009 following which Arora knocked at the doors of the State Information Commission.

During the resumed hearing of the appeal, the DGP office representative opposed the appeal.

However, brushing aside the objection, SIC Surinder Singh, today directed the PIO to provide the requisite information to Arora within 30 days and adjourned the case to October 29th for compliance report.

While this amounts to asking the IPS officers in the state to make their assets public, a similar move is now expected to be made for IAS officers serving in the state.

“In the case of IAS officers, my application was referred to the personnel department but they never got back to me. My request for information regarding IAS officers is now pending as an appeal in the commission,” added Arora.