Latest news with #RighttoInformationAct
Time of India
6 hours ago
- Business
- Time of India
Karnataka high court rules Century Club comes under Right to Information Act due to receipt of land grant
Bengaluru: The Karnataka high court ruled that Century Club, Bengaluru, falls under the Right to Information Act's purview due to its receipt of 7.5 acres of land from the Kingdom of Mysore through the Maharaja in 1913. Justice Suraj Govindaraj upheld the Karnataka Information Commission's order in this regard, stating the land grant constitutes substantial state financing. The court dismissed Century Club's petition challenging this decision. The case originated when advocate S Umapathy requested RTI-mandated records in 2012. The club refused, claiming it wasn't a public authority. Umapathy then approached the Karnataka Information Commission in 2013. On March 14, 2018, the Information Commission directed the club to provide the requested information. You Can Also Check: Bengaluru AQI | Weather in Bengaluru | Bank Holidays in Bengaluru | Public Holidays in Bengaluru Century Club contested this, arguing it operates on member payments and isn't a public authority under RTI. They maintained the land grant from the Maharaja, their Patron-in-Chief at the relevant time, wasn't a govt largesse. Umapathy countered that the current value of the centrally-located land was substantial, running into crores of rupees. The court noted the 1913 land grant belonged to the Kingdom of Mysore, with no evidence suggesting it was the Maharaja's personal property. The judge emphasised that the club's entire operations depend on this land adjacent to Cubbon Park. Justice Suraj Govindaraj concluded that the land's present value would amount to hundreds or thousands of crores, far exceeding member contributions. This substantial state contribution through the Kingdom of Mysore makes RTI provisions applicable to Century Club. The judgement highlighted that the club's recreational, sports, and entertainment activities rely entirely on this granted land, without which its existence would be questionable. The court rejected Century Club's petition to exempt itself from RTI obligations.
Indian Express
12 hours ago
- Politics
- Indian Express
Sena (UBT) MLC Anil Parab demands minister Yogesh Kadam's resignation over ‘Kandivali dance bar run with mother's licence'
Shiv Sena (UBT) MLC Anil Parab on Tuesday demanded the resignation of Maharashtra Minister of State for Home Yogesh Kadam, alleging that a dance bar in Kandivali was being operated under a licence held by his mother and that firms linked to the minister's family were mining sand illegally in Ratnagiri. Parab said he would submit documents, pen drives, and evidence to Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis on Wednesday and warned he would approach the Bombay High Court if Kadam was not removed from his post. 'Devendra Fadnavis should seek Kadam's resignation. (Deputy Chief Minister) Eknath Shinde won't act because of political constraints. If the state doesn't act, I will go to court,' Parab said. Kadam belongs to the Shinde-led Shiv Sena. Parab's allegations stem from a May 30 raid at Savali Bar and Restaurant in Kandivali (West), following which the Mumbai police booked 22 bar dancers, 22 customers, and four staff members for violations under bar regulations. Citing documents received under the Right to Information Act, Parab said the bar's licence was in the name of Jyoti Kadam, the minister's mother. 'If obscene activities take place in a bar licensed to the minister's family, responsibility lies with the licence holder. Saying it is run by someone else is no defence under the law,' the MLC said at a press conference. Parab alleged that bar rules were violated, with reports of obscene dance and money being thrown—all of which he claimed was documented in an FIR. Former minister Ramdas Kadam, father of Yogesh Kadam, admitted that the licence is in his wife's name but said the bar has been run by a man named Shetty for 30 years. 'There is an orchestra licence and waitress licence. Nothing illegal is happening,' he said, dismissing Parab's claims as politically motivated. Parab also accused Kadam of diverting silt from the Jagbudi river in Ratnagiri, stating that sand meant for farmers was instead sent to a private dental college allegedly linked to Kadam's sister. He named Akil Mukadam, who he claimed works at Kadam's residence, as the one overseeing the illegal sand removal. Kadam, in response, denied all charges, saying he had no involvement in the operation of the bar or in sand removal, and that the allegations were 'baseless and defamatory'. He said the silt removed was not of construction quality. 'If I had any vested interest, no raid would have happened. The police acted under my instructions,' Kadam said on Monday. Kadam has also announced that he will move a breach of privilege motion against Parab in the Legislative Council and write to the chairperson over Parab's remarks.
The Wire
14 hours ago
- The Wire
'Systematic Cover-Up': Supreme Court Order on J&K Police's Custodial Torture Bares Extent of Cruelty
Srinagar: A landmark judgement by the Supreme Court on July 21 marked the end of nearly 30-month long legal battle for the wife of a Jammu and Kashmir police constable who was allegedly tortured in custody at an interrogation centre in Kupwara in the winter of 2023. A bench of Justices Vikram Nath and Sandeep Mehta ordered a 90-day probe by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) into the incident while directing the CBI to arrest the accused police officials within a month. The court said that the probe by Kupwara district police into the torture allegations under its jurisdiction 'reveals a disturbing pattern of systematic cover-up' and 'abuse of authority'. The bench ordered the J&K administration to pay Rs 50 lakh as compensation to the victim to be recovered from the salaries of accused officials. 'The unprecedented gravity of this case involving brutal and inhuman custodial torture, characterised by the complete mutilation of the appellant's genitalia, represents one of the most barbaric instances of police atrocity which the state is trying to defend and cover up with all pervasive power,' the SC said on Monday. It added: "This is not merely a case of investigative error or overreach; it is a calculated effort to fabricate charges, distort the narrative, and shield the real perpetrators of crime of custodial torture. The use of State machinery to invert the roles of victim and offender represents a grave subversion of the criminal process and compels the intervention of this court to prevent the miscarriage of justice'. 'Suicide' The case dates back to February 20, 2023 when Khursheed Ahmad Chohan, who was posted as a constable in Baramulla district police lines, reported at the office of the senior superintendent of police (Kupwara) in connection with a narcotics case after being summoned by a deputy superintendent of police. Chohan's counsel told the apex court that he was held at the Joint Interrogation Centre (JIC) in Kupwara and allegedly tortured for six days due to which he slipped into a coma and the Kupwara police, instead of acting against the alleged perpetrators, booked him under section 309 (abetment to suicide) of Indian Penal Code on February 26, 2023. A First Information Report (FIR) filed on the same day by the Kupwara police stated that Chohan had suffered a self-inflicted wound when he 'tried to cut his vein with a blade'. Despite repeated pleas, authorities refused to share Chohan's medical examination report with his family, prompting a Right to Information Act (RTI) query by Rubina Akhtar, his wife. This RTI changed the course of the legal battle. Medical report changes case Chohan's medical report, obtained through the RTI, from Sher-e-Kashmir Institute of Medical Science (SKIMS) in Srinagar where he was treated, revealed significant details about the nature of his injuries. According to the report, Chohan had suffered 'laceration on the scrotum with both testicles surgically removed, bruises on the buttocks extending to the thighs, tenderness on the palms and soles indicative of blunt trauma, the presence of vegetative particles in the rectum and multiple fractures'. Punching holes in the police FIR, the apex court observed that it was 'foolhardy to suggest that a rational person would subject himself to complete genital mutilation and cause injuries at inaccessible body parts so as to avoid questioning in a drug case'. 'The medical evidence conclusively establishes that such injuries are impossible to be self-inflicted. The respondent's theory of suicide attempt crumbles under scrutiny when examined against the timeline and the medical evidence,' the SC bench observed. The dismembered genitalia were brought in a plastic bag to SKIMS along with the victim on February 26, 2023 by a sub-inspector of J&K Police which has 'shock(ed) our conscience', the court observed. 'These facts, standing alone and uncontroverted, establish a prima facie case of the most heinous form of custodial torture and the total apathy of the local police officials in taking action against the perpetrators of custodial violence,' the court said, citing various constitution bench and other SC judgements. 'Cavalier dismissal' The bench was told that the Kupwara police refused to act on a written complaint by Akhtar on 1 March, 2023 and a legal notice on 2 March, which had sought registration of FIR against the perpetrators under Sections 307, 330, 331, 326 and other provisions of the Indian Penal Code. 'This cavalier dismissal of serious allegations of custodial torture demonstrates the institutional bias and predetermined mindset to protect the accused police officers,' the court observed. Chohan's family had later approached the J&K high court seeking registration of the FIR, a CBI probe and quashing of the FIR filed against him. However, his petition was turned down by the court. Instead of ordering the police to file an FIR, the court called for a preliminary inquiry into the matter, prompting Chohan to knock on the door of the apex court last year. Chohan's wife also filed the RTI query to obtain her husband's medical reports while authorities repeatedly denied her '(even the) basic medical records … to suppress evidence of the brutal custodial torture,' Chohan's counsel told the court. The apex court observed that the failure of J&K police to file an FIR 'despite clear disclosure of cognizable offences' constituted a direct violation of the fundamental rights under Articles 14 and 21 of the Constitution of India. 'The High Court grossly erred in failing to exercise its constitutional obligation of protecting the fundamental rights of a citizen, his dignity and right to life. It failed to consider the gravity of offences committed as well as the influence that could be exerted by accused persons being police officials,' the court observed. 'Stark disparity' In its 58-page judgement, the apex court observed that Chohan's medical examination report has shown that his 'injuries are much graver and more extensive than what is depicted in this manifestly fabricated narrative' by the Kupwara police. 'The stark disparity between the trivial description of 'cutting his vein' in the FIR and the barbaric reality of complete castration and systematic torture exposes the mala fide intent behind the FIR,' the apex court observed. Citing the discharge summary (2 March 2023) of Chohan issued by the SKIMS, the court observed that it 'provides unequivocal medical evidence that the appellant underwent an extensive surgical procedure, including 'exploration and repair of corporal bodies with end-to-end anastomosis of urethra, ligation of spermatic cord, repair of scrotal laceration, and debridement of necrotic tissue' for the treatment of his injuries. Citing the Latin maxim ' nemo judex in causa sua ' (no one should be a judge in his own cause), the apex court said that the high court's order of probe by J&K police into the case 'constitutes a flagrant violation of the fundamental principles of natural justice'. 'If the investigation is by an agency which is allegedly privy to the dispute, the credibility of the investigation will be doubted and that will be contrary to the public interest as well as the interest of justice', the SC bench observed. 'Considering the unprecedented gravity of this custodial torture case, the systematic cover-up orchestrated by local police machinery, the institutional bias demonstrated in the handling of the complaint, and the complete failure of local authorities to conduct a fair investigation and the unrelenting stand taken by the respondent State, we are constrained to direct transfer of investigation to the CBI,' the court ruled while ordering quashing of the FIR filed by Kupwara district police against Chohan.
Hindustan Times
20 hours ago
- Hindustan Times
Mumbai train blast verdict: Two lost decades, but a salve of vindication
MUMBAI: Of the 12 accused who were acquitted in the 7/11 serial bomb blasts of 2006 on Monday, Mohammad Sajid Magrub Ansari was the only one who could share the moment of relief and joy with his family. While the 11 other men have been in jail for 19 years Ansari was released on parole on July 1 and was slated to go back to the Nashik prison on August 10. After watching the proceedings of the Bombay High Court online from his home, Ansari decided to leave for Nashik prison on Monday itself. He said he was returning early to prison to complete discharge formalities because he could not wait to return to his family a free man. 'I have no words right now to describe how I feel. Everyone at home is overjoyed and we have been having sweets all morning. It hasn't fully sunk in, I am feeling so many emotions simultaneously,' Sajid told HT soon after the High Court's verdict. The 48-year-old was accused of making the explosive device that was detonated at Borivali station on July 11, 2006, a charge he has strenuously denied. Before his arrest in 2006, he ran a mobile repair shop at Jogeshwari, and says he knows nothing about the new smart phones that are now in use. He learnt how to use WhatsApp only after coming out on parole earlier this month. 'How can I go back to doing mobile repair work? I have been set back by almost 20 years. Despite my acquittal, I don't think anyone will give me a job,' he said. In prison, however, Sajid completed the first year of LLB and is now in his second year. He has been helping prison inmates with filing bail and parole applications as also those seeking information under the Right to Information Act. 'I strongly feel that laws that were made to punish the guilty should not be misused to punish the innocent. That's why I want to help people like me and provide legal aid to those who need it,' said Sajid. 'People from our community are often targeted but in prison I have seen even non-Muslims accused of crimes they did not commit. Some of them face serious charges under laws like POCSO. I really want to help such people,' said Sajid. He hopes to become a part of the Innocence Network, an advocacy group that works for justice for indigent inmates, started by Abdul Wahid Shaikh, his brother-in-law and former co-accused. The former school teacher was the only one of the 13 men accused in 2006 to have been acquitted by the trial court in 2015. Sajid says he has been fortunate to have family and friends who never doubted his innocence even after the trial court convicted him and sentenced him to life. Not all of his co-accused, he said, have had a similar support system. His two brothers Khalid and Javed looked after his family while he was incarcerated, including his daughter, born two months after his arrest. 'Growing up without her father she has become very sensitive. She told me she would often shed tears when she would see her cousins with both parents while she had only her mother to comfort her,' said Sajid. 'When I come back from Nashik, I want to spend time with my family including my extended family which always believed in my innocence. They have stood by me but in all these years I could not be a part of their happy or sad occasions. I want to make up for that. I will visit my relatives in in Bijnaur at the first opportunity I get.' 'When I needed my father the most, he wasn't there' Mubashshara Majid was a one-month-old baby when her father, Mohammad Majid Mohamad Shafi, accused No. 5 in the 7/11 Mumbai train blasts case, was arrested by the Maharashtra Anti-Terrorism Squad (ATS) in 2006. Near Kolkata's Sealdah, she was raised by her mother, Farzana Yasmin. 'I grew up without my father, but my mother never hid anything about him from me. She always believed he was innocent and that he would come back home one day,' Mubashshara, now 19, told HT. In school, however, she could not avoid answering questions about her absent father, as her mother was the only parent who turned up at parent-teacher meetings. 'Whenever someone asked me where my father is, I'd say he does not live here. If they asked me where he lives, I'd say Mumbai,' said Mubashshara. On Monday, after hearing about her father's acquittal, Mubashshara said, 'I feel grateful and thankful to my lord. I really don't know what to say. My mother waited for justice her whole life. She would have been the happiest person today.' In 2013, Yasmin suffered a kidney failure, and her health started deteriorating. 'In 2015, when the (trial) court convicted my father, that broke her. In 2021, I lost her,' said Mubashshara, who now lives with her maternal grandparents. Her mother's passing was devastating for the teenager. 'I was shattered. And in those moments, when I needed my father the most, he wasn't there,' she said. Majid worked at a shoe shop started by his father in the Raja Bazar area of Kolkata. However, Mubashshara's early memories of him are those in the corridors of Mumbai's City Civil and Sessions Court. 'I would only get to see him coming in and out of one room and going to another,' she said. She got to know her father through letters they wrote to one another, sometimes eight pages long. While Mubashshara could talk to her father twice a month over a video call, the last time she met her father in person was in 2020 at the prison in Amravati, where they were allowed 'gala bhet' or physical contact between prison inmates and their family members. 'I have learnt from my father that you cannot change the things that are not in your control, but I prayed because I believe that dua (prayer) can change one's destiny,' Mubashshara said. 'My brothers were made scapegoats by those who could not find the culprits' In the 19 years that brothers Faizal and Muzammil Shaikh spent in prison, both their parents passed away, and their brother Rahil has been missing. Their only sister, Aaliya, a Math teacher in Dubai, has been waiting to see her brothers walk out of jail. 'Of course, I feel great relief today but I also feel sad that my parents suffered so much before they passed away,' she told HT. On July 11, 2006, Aaliya remembers Faizal calling her frantically, asking where their father was. 'We lived in Mira Road, and so many of our family members travelled on the local train every day. It was a lifeline for us to travel anywhere from Mira Road. Faizal called my phone and asked me where Abu was. He asked me to make sure he was not on the train. He was so worried. Would someone who carries out a bomb blast make such a frantic call?' In 2015, the special MCOCA court sentenced Faizal to death and Muzammil to life imprisonment. 'When my brothers were arrested, the media was lined up outside our house. I said that day that my brothers were innocent, and it has been proven now. My parents suffered so much pain and harassment. My father died in 2019, and my mother died in 2024. I was the only one there for them after their sons were arrested,' said Aaliya, a mother of four, who made annual trips to Mumbai to look after her parents. Her brothers, both unmarried at the time of their arrest, are now in their forties. She said Faizal ran his own business and Muzammil, a software engineer, had a job in Bengaluru before they were arrested. 'My brothers have been very strong and patient all these years. Even from prison, they have been giving us hope. And now, after 19 years, we're seeing this day,' said Aaliya. 'Questions should now be asked of those who made false cases against my brothers. They could not catch the real culprits, and they made my brothers scapegoats to hide their own incapability,' she added. 'His innocence was never in doubt, our whole town is happy today' By afternoon on Monday, Anees Ahmed was in Pune setting the paperwork in motion for the release of his cousin, Asif Basheer Khan, from the Yerawada Central Jail. He was not surprised when he heard that the process may take longer than he expected, but he is hopeful of taking Khan back home to Jalgaon on Tuesday evening. Khan, a civil engineer, worked with a construction company before he was arrested in 2006 in the 7/11 blasts case. His two daughters were toddlers at the time. One of them is now married. As a father, Asif may not have been able to watch his children grow up but he may be out of jail in time to meet his grandson, who was born only three days ago. 'His son has had a baby who is only a few days old. The family, our town, and our community are very happy today. People have been coming to his house to meet his family all day,' said Anees. In 2017, over 2,500 people in Jalgaon had signed affidavits vouching for Khan's innocence in the case, following a drive held outside local mosques. 'After conviction, his wife divorced him; she too had suffered' Much before he was named accused No. 11 in the case, Zameer Ahmed Shaikh was a footballer who played at the city's famed grounds like Cooperage and YMCA. 'He was a very good player. He even played for his college,' says Zameer's brother, Sharif-ur-Rehman L Shaikh. Sharif remembers his brother's arrest. 'The way the bomb blasts shook the entire city, my brother's arrest in this case shook us the same way again,' he said. 'Until Zameer was arrested, we had never even seen the gate of a police station in our lives.' He also remembers their mother insisting on coming to the trial court on every date of hearing just to be able to see her 'favourite son' for a few minutes. Her passing, in 2010, was a tragedy the family endured as they waited for justice. At the time of his arrest in 2006, Zameer had a four-year-old son. His daughter was born the same year. 'His wife stood by him all along. She always supported him and believed in his innocence. She thought they would start their life anew when the court acquits him. But in 2015, after the trial court convicted him, she couldn't do that anymore. She lost hope of his return. They then got divorced. She, too, had suffered, and she had to think of her life and that of her two children,' said Sharif. 'Growing up was not easy for his children. The family did look after them, but baap toh akhir baap hota hai na (a father is a father after all).' Sharif added, 'We were all very depressed after the conviction in 2015. But as they say, time is the greatest healer. Now once more, we are hopeful of Zameer's return.'
The Hindu
4 days ago
- Politics
- The Hindu
Call to create awareness on RTI among tribal women
Andhra Pradesh State RTI Commissioner Rehana Begum on Friday (July 18, 2025) said the Right to Information Act was a powerful tool that can help tribal communities access information about government schemes, services, and entitlements specifically meant for them. Speaking at an awareness programme organised in virtual mode, she called on Adivasi women to use the Act for their welfare. She said women in tribal regions often faced challenges due to illiteracy and lack of access to information. However, by identifying and training active and enthusiastic tribal women, it was possible to cultivate a culture of questioning and awareness. Once equipped with knowledge of the RTI Act, these women could play a key role in solving local issues by helping others access critical information, she said. The five-day awareness program was organised in Anakapalli district from July 14 to July 18 by LibTech India and the United Forum for RTI Campaign, Andhra Pradesh, in collaboration with various voluntary organisations. Tribal women from the districts of Manyam, Alluri Sitarama Raju, and Prakasam participated in the event. Representatives from LibTech India, including BDS Kishore, and members of the United Forum for RTI Campaign also took part in the event.
