THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The State Information Commissioner has slapped a fine of Rs 25,000 on Tripunithura municipality information officer for giving out misleading information to an RTI applicant, that too after keeping the application under wraps for a long time.
Information officer and municipality executive engineer T A Ambili was fined by the commissioner. Notwithstanding the initial delay in providing information regarding the action taken by the municipality on a public complaint, the officer took one and a half years to comply the commission instruction that the information requested should be provided to the applicant in 15 days.
Irumbanam native C B Asokan had sought the details of the permission given by the municipality for the construction of the retaining wall of Kaippanchery road in ward number 16. The details of the permit given to a person named Joy Varghese and the action taken by the municipality on a mass petition against the retaining wall construction were the main information requested by the petitioner.
State information commissioner K L Vivekanandan slapped the fine on the officer after a hearing.
Officer Ambiliy has remitted the fine at the government treasury and produced the original receipt at the commission.
