A Right to Information applicant who sought CCTV camera footage from a police station for a specific period was denied it, because cameras were non-functional, a hearing at the Telangana State Information Commission (TSIC) has revealed.
The issue came to light after the matter was posted before the TSIC in the last week of October, before Chief Information Commissioner Buddha Murali.
According to the order, the applicant, a resident of Tekulapalle, sought CCTV footage from cameras of Kondurgu police station, Ranga Reddy district, from March 28, 2021 to April 1, 2021 from the public information officer. His query was transferred to the sub-inspector of police of Kondurgu police station, under Section 6(3) of the RTI Act, 2005.
When no information was received, the applicant filed a first appeal, and then moved the TSIC with a second appeal.
The case was heard on September 15, 2021, with the TSIC directing the Assistant Commissioner of Police, Shadnagar Division, who is the appellete authority, to inquire and submit the report from which date the CCTV cameras are not functioning. The TSIC also sought to know what steps were taken for rectification and adjourned the case to October 29, 2021.
When the case was heard again, the appellete authority submitted a detailed report to the TSIC. After perusing the documents, the commission noted that the public information officer was unable to provide CCTV footage as cameras were not functioning during the said period.
