Retd TI who brought Lokayukta under RTI wins legal battle:Spent 9 years clearing his name; says, ‘People started taunting me’

People in the department looked at me with suspicion. My family and society also felt that if the Lokayukta had taken action, I must have done something wrong. Despite my explanations, people didn’t believe me. Today, after the Supreme Court’s decision, everyone understood the truth. This is what retired TI Kamta Prasad Mishra said, on whose petition the Supreme Court brought the Lokayukta organisation under the ambit of the RTI Act. On 15 June, the Court stated that the Lokayukta’s Special Police Establishment is not an intelligence or security agency, and therefore cannot be excluded from RTI. The Court said, The exemption notification related to it has been cancelled. Find out why Mishra knocked on the court’s door.
‘Even my own people looked at me with suspicion’
Kamta Prasad Mishra says, “On February 10, 2017, I was the TI (Station House Officer) at Madhavnagar police station in Katni district. Suddenly, a person named Anil Tiwari complained to the Lokayukta that I was demanding a bribe of 50,000 rupees from him in exchange for investigating a case.The file for the complaint that was cited to make the accusation had already been closed two years ago. I had no such case pending for which I would demand money. The Lokayukta initiated action based on the complaint. Mishra states that motive, demand, acceptance, and recovery are necessary to prove corruption, but not a single one of these was proven in his case. Received punishment for taking action against influential people
According to Mishra, in a case under Section 307, he did not refuse to arrest the accused despite pressure from influential people. He was targeted due to this animosity. No bribe demand, no recovery: Lokayukta When the file for prosecution sanction reached the government, the then Home Minister Bhupendra Singh did not consider it appropriate to approve. Later, Home Minister Bala Bachchan sought clarification on nine points. The Lokayukta acknowledged in writing that no work was pending with Mishra, no bribe was demanded, and no recovery was made. Despite this, the challan was presented in 2020. Even after six years, charges have not been framed. RTI battle and HC’s fine
Mishra says, When such a big decision was taken against me, I had the right to know which officer wrote what comment on the file. What correspondence took place between the Lokayukta and the government, and on what basis the prosecution was approved. That’s why I filed an RTI. The Lokayukta refused to provide the information. Mishra approached the High Court. The High Court, considering his argument valid, imposed a fine of Rs 5,000 on the officials and ordered them to provide the information. Still, the information was not provided, and the matter reached the Supreme Court. ‘This was not just my fight, but a fight for transparency in the system’
For Kamta Prasad Mishra, this was a fight for self-respect. He says, This false case damaged my social and departmental image. People used to doubt me. Today, after the Supreme Court’s decision, people are understanding the truth. I hope the entire file will come out and justice will be served. He says that this fight was also for transparency in the system. If investigative agencies hide information, mistakes will not come to light. RTI is the most powerful medium for accountability. What next After this decision, the question is whether transparency will increase in the Lokayukta and other investigative agencies. RTI activist Shivanand Dwivedi says that its direct impact will only be on the SPE of Madhya Pradesh Lokayukta, because the court has canceled only that notification. Other agencies can still avoid providing information by citing legal loopholes. Transparency in prosecution, sanctions, and the decision-making process is necessary, although courts have previously rejected the demand to make case diaries public. This decision will set a precedent, but people may still have to go through a long legal process to get information.