Suspended for filing RTI, cop awaits justice

CHENNAI: A sub-inspector in Villupuram district has been under suspension for about two years now for asking queries under the Right To Information Act relating to the disbursement of special reward amount' to police informers.
P Jayasankar (36), an MSc graduate, has been struggling to get his suspension revoked, despite the Tamil Nadu Information Commission ordering the director general of police in July last year to take disciplinary action against those who were responsible for suspending him "for asking queries under the RTI Act."

A native of Ettarai in Tiruchi district, Jayasankar joined the police service in 1999. While he was working in Valathi police station as sub-inspector (law and order) in February 2009, he had filed an RTI application with the district collectorate seeking details of disbursement of special reward amount to police informers.
Stating that reward amounts to informers were normally given through the police officials who handled the case, Jayasankar, alleged that the department had obtained his signatures on three blank special reward vouchers.' He asked the collectorate as to how much amount was taken through the vouchers and who had withdrawn the money.
The collectorate forwarded the RTI application to the superintendent of police. Awaiting reply to his RTI application, Jayasankar was shocked to receive a suspension order on March 14, 2009 from the district police.
The charge memo said: "You had asked certain information under the RTI Act, violating all decency and thereby made a daring attempt to bring bad name to the police department&The manner in which the petition prepared by you and the information asked by you would prove that you were unfit to be a member of police department.'' The charge memo went to add the RTI application as one of the 23 documents based on which the charges were framed against Jayasankar.
The SI moved the Tamil Nadu Information Commission, which passed an order on July 14, 2010. "The commission takes a very serious view of this. Whether there were other charges which warrant suspension is irrelevant as long as RTI petition is also added as one of the charges," the order said.
The commission also directed the DGP to initiate disciplinary action against those responsible for his suspension for his RTI queries and file an action taken report within six weeks. But Jayasankar's battle for justice continues.
"I have moved the commission again as I haven't received any response from the department. I am planning to approach the high court soon,'' Jayasankar told.