UP refuses to reveal details of Kashmiri prisoners.Authorities Refuse to Reveal Details of People From J&K Detained in UP Jails Under RTI
Srinagar, October 16, 2019: The authorities in Uttar Pradesh in India have refused to provide details of individuals (Kashmiri political prisoners) shifted from Kashmir to Agra Central Prison post August 5, when the Indian government abrogated Article 370 and bifurcated the Jammu and Kashmir into two union territories.
Some top lawyers including Bar President, Mia Abdul Qayoom, Nazir Ahmad Roonga, Abdul Salam Rather and Fayaz Ahmad Sodagar Hurriyet leaders including Showket Ahmad Bakshir, Bashir Kashmiri have been shifted to the Agra jail from Kashmir.
“The prison authorities in Uttar Pradesh have refused to provide any details of individuals shifted from J&K to Agra Central Prison ,” said New Delhi-based RTI activist Venkatesh Nayak, who is the programme head of Commonwealth Human Rights Initiative.
The Public Information Officer (PIO) has responded to Nayak that he has asked “third party” information which could not be provided as per a 2008 circular issued by the administrative reforms department of Uttar Pradesh. “Ironically, this circular cannot be found on the department’s website or in the compilation of RTI-related government of UP circulars uploaded on the website of the Uttar Pradesh Information Commission,” Nayak said.
Several residents of J&K have been moved to prisons in Uttar Pradesh under detention orders. Officials said over 300 persons from J&K have been detained in four jails of UP.
The RTI intervention: After reading one such report of more than 100 persons from J&K being detained in four jails of UP, on August 26, 2018, I (Venkatesh Nayak)filed an RTI application with one such jail, namely, the Agra Central Prison, seeking the following information:
“Please provide the following information relating to the persons from Jammu and Kashmir who have been detained in Agra Central Prison as on the date of this RTI application:
a) the complete list of such detenues along with their names, age, gender and residential address;
b) a clear photocopy of the pages of the relevant register containing the personal details of every such detenue at the time of his or her admission to Agra Central Prison;
c) a clear photocopy of the report of the medical examination of every detenue conducted at the time of his or her admission to Agra Central Prison as per paragraphs 20-21 of the Uttar Pradesh Jail Manual;
d) the prison inmate class which has been accorded to every detenue such as “superior” or “general” class or “casual” or “habitual” or “under-trial” as per the UP Jail Manual;
e) a clear photocopy of the detention order and grounds for detention pertaining to every detenue as available on record;
f) a clear photocopy of the rules and regulations as per the UP Jail Manual governing the treatment of every such detenue;
g) a clear photocopy of the list of items supplied to the detenues upon admission such as clothing, bedding, soap, utensils, newspapers and magazines etc., if any
h) a clear photocopy of any document that contains the details of action taken by the administration of Agra Central Prison to enable the detenues to make representations to the Advisory Board against their detention orders under Section 15 of the Jammu and Kashmir Public Safety Act, 1978;
i) a clear photocopy of the solitary confinement ticket issued to the detenues, if any;
j) the exact nature of physical lodgement of the detenues in the Agra Central Prison, namely, whether lodged in cells or barracks;
k) the exact nature of the segregation of the detenues, namely, whether housed with convicts or undertrials;
l) the total number of requests that have been received from any legal adviser for interviews with the detenues, till date; and
m) the total number of requests referred to at para #(l) above that have been permitted by the Superintendent of Agra Central Prison as per para 457-D of the UP Jail Manual, till date.”
As this information concerns the life and liberty of the individuals being held in Agra Central Prison, I sought the information within 48 hours as per the proviso under Section 7(1) of the RTI Act.
Also read: Former SC Judge Seeks Punishment for Officers Who Delay Information Under RTI
The PIO’s reply
The RTI application, sent by speed post, was delivered within three days (on August 29). The PIO showed no urgency while dealing with the matter. Instead, he sought information from the Convicts’ Entry and Release Office of the Agra Central Prison five days later, on September 3, 2019. That office replied three days later, stating:
“Information sought at points a, b, c, d, e, f, g, h,, i, j, k, l, is related to third party which cannot be disclosed as per para #37 of the Guidance Manual issued for PIOs vide Government Order of No. Sam.Bha.Sam. 16/43-22008-15/2(7)/07 issued by the Administrative Reforms Department-02, dated 14.02.2008.
The information sought cannot be provided under Section 8(1)(g) of the Right to Information Act, 2005” (unofficial translation from the original).
In his reply dated September 18, 2019 (13 days after receiving these inputs), the PIO of Agra Central Prison stated that the information sought cannot be provided as per Section 8(1)(g) the RTI Act and attached a copy of the communication sent by the Convicts’ Entry and Release Office of the Agra Central Prison. The PIO took 20 days to reply to an RTI application which he ought to have disposed within 48 hours. Click here for the RTI application and replies.
What is wrong with the RTI reply?
Through the RTI application, I had hoped to find out two categories of information:
1. The names and addresses of people from J&K who were being held in Agra Central Prison; and
2. Whether the detenues were receiving treatment as per the provisions of the UP Jail Manual and were able to make representations against their detention to the concerned authorities.
Also read: Do RTI Commissioners Have the Right to Information?
The PIO’s reply is gravely erroneous for the following reasons:
1. The Convicts’ Entry and Release Office of the Agra Central Prison, obviously being untrained in the provisions and procedures of the RTI Act could not understand the difference between Section 8(1)(g) and the “third party” provisions of the RTI Act. Section 8(1)(g) of the RTI Act is reproduced below: sources