Litigant slammed for treating HC as post office
Chennai Mar 19 PTI The Madras High Court has slammed a public interest litigant for treating it as a post office in a petition regarding certain recommendations made by the CIC over postal stamps on RTI applications Petitioner S P Muthuraman had moved the Madurai bench of the Madras High Court praying for a direction to the Union government to give effect to one of the recommendations of the Central Information Commission CIC made in August 2013 to permit affixation of postal stamps on the RTI applications in addition to Indian postal orders or demand drafts The first bench of the High Court comprising Chief Justice M N Bhandari and Justice D Bharatha Chakravarthy on Saturday noted that it was only a recommendation and not a direction The petitioner without finding out as to what action was taken by the appropriate authority on the CICs recommendation has moved the High Court by way of this PIL It noted that the petitioner wants the court to conduct a roving and fishing enquiry as to what steps were taken by the respondents based on the CICs recommendation The High Court cannot act as a post office to collect and exchange information This is more so when even according to the petitioner the CIC has only made recommendations that cannot by any stretch of imagination be taken as a statute so as to give effect to it The authorities concerned would have to decide what action should be taken based on the CICs recommendation the bench said In view of the above we do not find any case for grant of relief prayed for by the petitioner The writ petition fails and the same is dismissed the bench added PTI COR HDA HDA
Chennai Mar 19 PTI The Madras High Court has slammed a public interest litigant for treating it as a post office in a petition regarding certain recommendations made by the CIC over postal stamps on RTI applications Petitioner S P Muthuraman had moved the Madurai bench of the Madras High Court praying for a direction to the Union government to give effect to one of the recommendations of the Central Information Commission CIC made in August 2013 to permit affixation of postal stamps on the RTI applications in addition to Indian postal orders or demand drafts The first bench of the High Court comprising Chief Justice M N Bhandari and Justice D Bharatha Chakravarthy on Saturday noted that it was only a recommendation and not a direction The petitioner without finding out as to what action was taken by the appropriate authority on the CICs recommendation has moved the High Court by way of this PIL It noted that the petitioner wants the court to conduct a roving and fishing enquiry as to what steps were taken by the respondents based on the CICs recommendation The High Court cannot act as a post office to collect and exchange information This is more so when even according to the petitioner the CIC has only made recommendations that cannot by any stretch of imagination be taken as a statute so as to give effect to it The authorities concerned would have to decide what action should be taken based on the CICs recommendation the bench said In view of the above we do not find any case for grant of relief prayed for by the petitioner The writ petition fails and the same is dismissed the bench added PTI COR HDA HDA
