PMO has declined to share details of alleged corruption complaints received against Union ministers

The Prime Minister's Office (PMO), while replying to a RTI query filed by RTI Activist Anil Galgali has declined to share the details of the alleged corruption complaints received against Union ministers, invoking section 7(9) of the act saying that this would disproportionately divert the resources of the public authority as it "may be a subjective as well as a cumbersome exercise". Section 7(9) of the Act specify that an information shall ordinarily be provided in the form in which it is sought unless it would disproportionately divert the resources of the public authority or would be detrimental to the safety or preservation of the record in question.

Replying to an Right to Information (RTI) query filed by the Prime Minister's Office (PMO) has said that it keeps receiving complaints against various union ministers as well as high level functionaries including corruption related and non-corruption related matter, however, it does not keep records of these complaints in any single master file. The query filed by RTI Activist Anil Galgali, had sought the names and list of the ministers against whom various complaints were filed against union and state ministers of the Modi-led government during NDA-1 regime.

Under Secretary and CPIO of the PMO Praveen Kumar has stated that the complaints are pseudonymous and anonymous in nature and they are duly examined keeping in the view of the veracity of the allegations or accusations and supporting documents in relation to these accusations. "After taking the needful action, the records are not kept in any single master file or collated and kept in one place. These are scattered across different sectors and units of this office and in view of the above, the collation of information sought will require the undertaking of thorough search of numerous files," reply said. Galgali disapproved the RTI response and termed is as "immature and unprincipled" on part of PMO.

Galgali said, "The reply given by the PMO itself clarifies that something are very much fishy and complaints filed against the ministers in plenty. When government gave compulsory retirement to several top level babus, then why it did not act against the ministers," he quipped.