The High Court has issued a notice to the State Information Commission… a response has been requested within 4 weeks.

News Investigation / VILOK PATHAK 

The NI / Jabalpur / Regarding the allegations of a fake caste certificate against a Civil Judge, the Chief Justice’s bench of the Madhya Pradesh High Court, after hearing the arguments, has issued a notice to the State Information Commission, asking for a response within four weeks. An RTI activist from Mandla district has filed a petition in the High Court against the order of the State Information Commission, seeking justice. The petitioner, Mukesh Srivas, presented the petition in the Honorable High Court of Jabalpur, stating that Respondent No. 5 is currently serving as a Civil Judge in the Civil Court of Rehli, Sagar district.

The serious allegation against the respondent is that they are a native of Mandla district and, according to the documents, their education was also completed in Mandla district. Their caste falls under the Other Backward Class (OBC) category in Mandla district. However, to benefit from the reservation quota for government service, the respondent allegedly fabricated a fake Scheduled Tribe (ST) caste certificate from another district to secure the position of Civil Judge.

The petitioner had previously filed a written complaint with the Principal Registrar of the High Court in Jabalpur, the Governor of Madhya Pradesh in Bhopal, and the State Information Commission, attaching all relevant documents. However, no action was taken against the respondent. Consequently, the petitioner sought information under Section 6(1) of the Right to Information Act, 2005, from the Public Information Officer, Registrar of the High Court in Jabalpur, regarding all documents submitted by the respondent at the time of their initial appointment, including mark sheets, caste certificates, domicile certificates, degrees, diplomas, and other documents.

The requested information was not provided, citing relevant sections of the Act. The petitioner then filed a second appeal with the Madhya Pradesh State Information Commission in Bhopal. The petitioner alleges that the appellate officer dismissed the appeal without considering the petitioner’s arguments, violating the rules, and issued a one-sided decision. Previously, in a similar request, the appellate officer of the State Information Commission had ordered the provision of the documents, stating that the educational qualification documents of any public servant do not fall under the category of private or personal information. However, since the respondent is a judge, the earlier order was not applied, and the respondent’s documents were deemed personal.

To seek proper justice, the petitioner filed a petition against this order in the Honorable High Court of Jabalpur. The Chief Justice’s bench has heard the matter and issued a notice to the State Information Commission, Bhopal, asking for a response within four weeks. Advocate Gopal Singh Baghel is representing the petitioner in this case.

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