Sufficient safeguards

08/12/2018

Notwithstanding much hue and cry from Kashmir valley based politicians and separatists over the recent decision of the State Administrative Council headed by Governor Satya Pal Malik bringing Jammu and Kashmir Bank Ltd under the purview of transparency law, the Full Bench of State Information Commission (SIC) had declared the bank as Public Authority as defined in Section 2 of the State Right to Information Act way back in 2012. However, the judgment was not implemented by the successive Governments for obvious reasons although all the apprehensions about frivolous applications aimed at breaching the trust between the banker and the depositors were dispelled by the State Information Commission on the ground of adequate safeguards provided in the Act. Several residents of the State and RTI activists while exercising their right conferred on them under Section 3 of the J&K RTI Act, 2009 had filed applications before the then Chairman of the J&K Bank Limited seeking information on various aspects.
However, these applications were rejected by the then Chairman on the ground that Bank doesn't fall under the purview of the J&K RTI Act. Finally, the applicants knocked the doors of the State Information Commission, which clubbed the applications for hearing. As an important question of law was involved, a Full Bench of the Commission was assigned the task. The Full Bench comprising the then Chief Information Commissioner G R Sufi and the then Information Commissioners DrSudesh Kumar Sharma and Nazir Ahmad on April 24, 2012 delivered a landmark judgment declaring J&K Bank Ltd as Public Authority as defined in Section 2 of the State RTI Act. The Commission had also directed the then Chairman-cum-Chief Executive Officer of the Bank to designate First Appellate Authorities, Public Information Officers and Assistant Public Information Officers as provided under Section 5 of the RTI Act.
The J&K Bank is considered to be one of first State banks in the country. According to the extended Central Laws to the State, the J&K Bank was characterized as a Government Company as per the provisions of the Indian Companies Act, 1956. In 1971 the Bank was accorded the status of Scheduled Bank and in 1976 it was declared as 'A' class Bank by RBI", the SIC had observed, adding "the Comptroller & Auditor General of India exercises its jurisdiction while auditing the Bank. The State Audit Authorities are also auditing the accounts of the Bank. All these factors strengthen Government control and influence over J&K Bank Ltd". The J&K Bank has reached its present zenith and heights only because of the patronage of the State Government which nourish its programmes at appropriate times and but for the contribution of the State Government, J&K Bank would have not seen the light of the day.

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