RTI answer: IG146;s letter to Buddha lost

When Chief Minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee took charge for his second term, he told a rally of Government employees...

When Chief Minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee took charge for his second term, he told a rally of Government employees: 8220;Hate corruption. Educate others to hate corruption.8221;

Now, his own Secretariat has lost a letter written to the Chief Minister detailing instances of corruption and malpractices by some of his top bureaucrats and police officers.

The complainant, Inspector General of Police Nazrul Islam, discovered this after prolonged but futile correspondence with the Home Department, which is under the Chief Minister, followed by a right to information RTI application when he got no reply.

Islam, who was shunted to the enforcement branch earlier for speaking out his mind on corruption in the Government and ruling party, had written to Bhattacharjee on May 23, 2006, just five days after the Chief Minister was sworn in, listing a series of charges against Chief Secretary Amit Kiran Deb, Vigilance Commissioner S K Datta and Inspector General of Police Vigilance M K Mukherjee.

On January 3, the West Bengal Information Commission pointed out to the Home Secretary that Islam had furnished a photocopy of the receipt issued by the CM8217;s Secretariat for his letter, and the department has to give its 8220;views/ comments/ action taken8221;.

It gave the Home Secretary a fortnight to provide a reply. 8220;The commission will decide about the next course of action on receipt of your communication.8221;

Finally, the admission came from the Home Secretary, via a letter by Joint Secretary A G Ghosh: 8220;No information could be furnished as the representation to the Chief Minister, on whose basis it was sought, could not be traced in the department.8221;

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The Joint Secretary sought a copy of the letter from Islam.

The IGP told The Indian Express that he had not yet decided whether he would write to the Chief Minister again.

8220;Officially, I cannot comment,8221; he added.

Islam also said that he saw no point in writing again as over the past two years, two of the officials he had written about had retired.

The Chief Secretary and the Home Secretary were not available for comment.

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In his letter to Bhattacharjee 8212; a copy of which is with the The Indian Express 8212; Islam said a section of the administration had instigated an official inquiry against him on the basis of an anonymous letter, simply because he had raised his voice against their corrupt practices.