RTI plea seeks Madhya Pradesh bureaucrats’ property details

BHOPAL - Madhya Pradesh’s Chief Information Commissioner (CIC) has asked bureaucrats and police officials in the state to submit details of their property, officials said Sunday.

Acting on a petition by Choudhary Rakesh Singh, the deputy leader of opposition in the state assembly, demanding the officials file property returns of the last three years in public interest, CIC P.P. Tiwari last week ordered issuance of notices to Indian Administrative Service (IAS) and Indian Police Service (IPS) officers in the state.

“The state commission would issue notices to IPS and IAS officers including those posted in the state secretariat under section 19(4) of the Right to Information Act. Similar notices would be issued soon also to the police officers posted in police headquarters as directed by the CIC,” an officer in the state information commission said.

“Why should the bureaucrats be spared from making their assets public when even politicians were being made to do so,” Singh told IANS.

“Their properties should be made public to ensure transparency at every level of the government,” he said, adding that the people have every right to know about properties owned by the bureaucrats.

“The state government and the bureaucrats should not hesitate in providing such information,” the opposition leader added.

Hearing in this case would be held Nov 11 at the commission’s office here.

Bureaucrats refused to comment on the development.

“We will abide by the law and directives of the Information Commission as and when we get the notice,” said an IAS officer, who did not want to be named.