IRB candidate gets to see his answer-sheet

When Salam Prashanta Singh was told in November that he had failed to clear the written test for joining the India...

When Salam Prashanta Singh was told in November that he had failed to clear the written test for joining the India Reserve Battalion IRB as a jamadar/sub-inspector, the 24-year-old BSc graduate felt he had to take a look at his answer-sheet to be sure he had been marked accurately. After requests to the DPC Commissioner conducting the exam failed to elicit any response, Singh resorted to the newly introduced Manipur Right to Information Act and applied to joint secretary Th Chittaranjan, the State Public Information Officer SPIO, Department of Home, on November 30 for the permission to see his answer-sheet.

It took five months the stipulated period for disclosing information is 45 days before Singh finally got to see his answer-sheet on Saturday morning at the Manipur Police HQ. This could be possible after an order by State Chief Information Officer Rk Angousana, the appellate authority to whom Singh had taken his complaint in early February, who also took the SPIO to task.

In his decision on April 168212;a day before the Delhi High Court upheld the Central Information Commission8217;s order asking the UPSC to disclose candidates8217; individual scores and cut-off marks of the civil services preliminary exam 20068212;the state CIO has said 8220;the spirit of the present Act is that every citizen has the right to know the functioning of the public institution, which helps transparency and accountability of the government.

8220;In the present case, there are no reasons under the provisions of the Act, for keeping the information sought by the petitioner withheld, therefore the information sought by the complainant should be provided to him and he should have access to it.8221;

The SPIO in his written objection submitted on February 24, had stated that the issue of answer-sheets under the RTI Act should be examined with respect to other authorities like the UPSC. The SPIO also submitted that the matter was under active consideration by the departments of DP and Law, which was struck down by the CIO saying 8220;the Commission is not concerned with such consultation which is the internal matter of the government. Moreover, enough time was available to sort out the matter, so this can be taken as delaying tactics.8221;

The CIO has also asked the SPIO to show cause why he should not be penalised Rs 250 per day after the final decision till the records were made available to the complainant. Singh8212;presently employed as a medical representative8212;told The Indian Express after viewing his answer-sheet in the presence of CO, 1 IRB and an examiner, that he was satisfied with the marking.

8220;After I was declared unsuccessful, I felt I had done well enough to get the pass marks 23 out of 60. I had passed the physical test as well. The examiner pointed out grammatical errors and other mistakes. I8217;m happy that I could satisfy my doubt through the RTI Act.8221;