RTI TRIUMPH
College teacher fined 17K for not disclosing info on student
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S Kushala kushala.satyanarayana@timesgroup.com
It's common for the Karnataka Information Commission (KIC) to penalise government officials for not furnishing details to citizens. But this time, it has slapped a Rs 17,000 fine against a head of department of University Visvesvaraya College of Engineering (UVCE) for not giving out information to a student.
Bharathi J S, an electronics and communications engineering Masters student, got through the KPSC exams and based on her distinction marks, was appointed a lecturer when she completed her third semester. Since the fourth semester was project work, she obtained the government's permission to complete the course. But her HoD was unwilling to give her admission. When oral requests failed, she applied to the university under RTI, but got no response.
Since Bharathi is an expectant mother, her husband J R Ramesh intervened and approached KIC. The information commissioner who studied her case passed a stinker of an order against Prof G Narendra Kumar, chairman (HoD) of the department of electronics and communications, and penalised him.
Throughout her engineering and PG, Bharathi has been a distinction student. When she completed her third semester ME, she was appointed as a telecommunications lecturer in a government polytechnic college, Chintamani, in February 2010. In June, she got permission from the higher education department to complete her fourth semester project.
"The course requires 24 hours of project work in a week which I was ready to put in. But the HoD refused to permit me. After several rounds of talks, I wrote to him seeking permission, enclosing a copy of the government's permission. I got no response. Finally, I applied to the Bangalore University registrar (academic),'' says Bharathi, who is now on maternity leave.
With the department unrelenting, Bharathi's husband Ramesh approached the KIC. During the course of the argument, Kumar said that since Bharathi was working outside Bangalore, she could not pursue the project.
However, in his final order on March 19, the state information commissioner D Thangaraj blamed the HoD for suppressing the truth.
"The dual and contradictory statements of the respondent (HoD) clearly indicated that he has not approached the Commission with clean hands... This act should not come from a person no other than the chairman of the department who has to command great reverence from the students. He is expected to guide the students to shape their future and extend help. He has resorted to suppressing the truth to spoil the career of the student instead of discharging the pious responsibility as the guru/teacher.''
The masters course has to be completed within four years. "Bharathi has to complete her fourth semester before August 2012, failing which the entire term will become null and void. But for two years, the HoD did not give the permission,'' said Ramesh.
The KIC has levied a penalty of Rs 15,000 on Kumar to be paid to the Commission and a compensation of Rs 2,000 payable to Bharathi.
However, Kumar has challenged the KIC order in the high court, objecting to the fact that Bharathi's husband had applied for the RTI.
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