-: [rti4empowerment] FW: My RTI column in MoneyLife: In Rajasthan, where the RTI movement was born, technical university strangulates it

Friday, July 20, 2012

[rti4empowerment] FW: My RTI column in MoneyLife: In Rajasthan, where the RTI movement was born, technical university strangulates it

In Rajasthan, where the RTI movement was born, technical university strangulates it

VINITA DESHMUKH | July 18, 2012 01:24 PM |

B Tech student Abhishek Jain lost a plum IT job in Bangalore thanks to Rajasthan Technical University which lost his answer paper. He tenaciously pursued RTI but the university has made things tougher for students

All over India, innumerable students are filing RTI (Right to Information) applications to procure copies of their answer sheets, thanks to the historic Supreme Court judgment in August 2011 which allows students to have them. However, many educational institutions across the country continue to harass applicants or deny information. Here is a case of the Rajasthan Technical University (RTU) which happens to be in the state where the RTI movement was born but ironically is veiling itself from transparency and accountability.

Presently, 23-year old Jaipur-based Abhishek Jain, who holds distinction in B Tech, is in Hyderabad hunting for a job. In 2010, he was selected for a job in an IT firm in Bangalore during his last year of B Tech, when campus placements take place. However, he could not get the offer letter as marks for one of his subjects, mathematics, was pending with the Rajasthan Technical University(RTU). In March 2010 when annual results weredeclared, his result of this particular subject was held back by the university under "Results Later" (RL) category.

In his first year: 2007-2008, he was declared failed in mathematics, but since this result was declared late by the RTU, he could not give his second attempt as the date for filling examination form was over. Thus, due to RTU's inefficiency, Abhishek had to lose an entire academic year. In 2010, he attempted the paper, the results of which were declared one year later. In 2011 March, only Abhishek's result for the 'mathematics' subject was held back.

RTU stated that it had misplaced his answer sheet and put the onus on him to submit the photocopy of his attendance sheet to prove that he had indeed appeared for the examination. He had to go back to the examination centre, collect a copy of his attendance sheet. Thereafter, he and his parents submitted 25 copies of this "attendance sheet" at different points of time, to the registrar of the university. Finally, in June 2011, RTUdeclared him failed. He demanded to see his answer sheet as he was sure he could not have failed but the request was declined. By the time he ended his B Tech course, he had earned distinction and had passed in 41 of the 42 papers.

Since repeated requests to the university for a copy of his answer sheet did not help, he decided to invoke the RTI Act. He took the advice of RTI activists to know how to file the RTI. That he had to finally knock at the door of the state information commission, Chief State Information Commission as well as the high court reflects the obstinacy of the Rajasthan Technical University, in scuttling the Supreme Court order of August 2011, wherein it is mandatory for educational institutions to provide copies of answer sheets to students under the RTI Act. Not only that, he had to file contempt of court as RTU refused to pay heed to even the high court's and State Information Commission's order. This entire exercise took him more than a year.