Bureaucracy in UP shaken over SIC directive

Lucknow, Oct 16 (UNI) The beauracracy in Uttar Pradesh finds itself in a spot over an order of the State Information Commission (SIC) under the Right To Information (RTI) which directed the Mayawati government to make public the income and assets of all the IAS and IPS officials within next six weeks.

''It will be a good move in order to ensure transparency in the governance and the state government is studying the modalities in this regard,'' an official spokesman told UNI here this morning.

The decision, however, has shaken a section of officers as from time to time charges were being levelled against certain bureaucrats for amassing assets disproportionate to their income.

The SIC order was passed by acting chief information commissioner Gyenendra Sharma yesterday on an application of one Brijesh Mishra, seeking details of the movable and immovable assets of nine IAS officials under RTI.

Significantly, the senior officials against whom the RTI application was moved included chief secretary Atul Kumar Gupta, secretary (Home) Mahesh Gupta and senior IAS officers Dev Dutt, Lalit Srivastava, Rajan Shukla and Chandra Prakash.

The acting chief information commissioner has asked the state appointments department to publish property details of all the officials made available to it from 2005-06 onwards within six weeks.

The applicant moved the application under the RTI when the UP government refused to give him the details sought on the assets of these officials.

The commission in his order said that under section 4 of the RTI Act, it is obligatory on the Public Information Officer to make these information public.'' When MPs, MLas, could give details of their assets, why cannot the IAS and IPS'', he observed.

In the recent past, UP had earned a bad name on the disproportionate assets case when several officials including two ex-chief secretaries-- Akhand Pratap Singh and Neera Yadav- were chargesheeted by the CBI in similar cases.

UNI MB/SB ATI HT1222