Mira Road: The Maharashtra State Information Commission has issued a show cause notice to Sayali Sonawane, an assistant town planner with the Mira Bhayandar Municipal Corporation (MBMC), for failing to provide information to despite express orders to do so.

The Konkan bench of the Maharashtra State Information Commission has also imposed a Rs 25,000 penalty on Bharat Kundale, a retired assistant town planner from the same department, after rejecting his explanation for failing to provide information within the stipulated period.

The case began when RTI activist Praveen Tiwari sought details related to the MBMC’s cluster development scheme, including the list of companies appointed for the survey, their work orders, the tender process, survey reports submitted to the administration, and payments made to the companies.

Despite clear instructions from the commission to provide the information within the timeline, the town planning department failed to comply.

Following Tiwari’s first appeal, the First Appellate Authority directed Public Information Officer (PIO) Sayali Sonawane to provide the information within 20 days. However, the requested data was still not shared, prompting Tiwari to approach the State Information Commission again.

During hearing, Sonawane brought the required information but failed to explain the initial delay in providing it. Taking serious note of the non-compliance, the commission ordered Sonawane to submit a detailed explanation by May 22, justifying why she should not be penalized with a fine of Rs 25,000. Additionally, the commission has instructed that the information be provided to Tiwari free of charge within a week.

As for Kundale, the commission had previously sought an explanation for his failure to provide information within the deadline. After reviewing his response, the commission found it unsatisfactory and has now levied a penalty of Rs 25,000 against him.