Former Rajya Sabha MP Saket Gokhale on Friday alleged that the Election Fee has refused to expose main points of legit visits undertaken through Leader Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar and expenditure incurred on them from public price range, bringing up “non-public knowledge” beneath the Proper to Knowledge Act.
Gokhale stated he had sought the guidelines via an RTI utility filed on June 18, soliciting for main points of all legit visits undertaken through Kumar since he assumed rate as CEC on February 19, 2025, along side the expenditure incurred from public price range. No response from the Election Fee was once straight away to be had.
The guidelines sought incorporated the full selection of home and overseas visits, visit-wise dates, locations, function and mode of trip, main points of officers accompanying the CEC at executive expense and a break-up of expenditure on trip, lodging, day-to-day allowance, native shipping and different bills.
In line with a duplicate of the RTI answer shared on X through Gokhale, the EC stated in its July 31 reaction that, “The guidelines sought beneath this stuff pertains to non-public knowledge and due to this fact can’t be shared beneath Segment 8(1)(j) of the RTI Act, 2005.”
Wondering the verdict, Gokhale stated, “How can expenditure incurred on legit visits from public price range be referred to as ‘non-public knowledge’? Even the price of PM’s overseas trip has been disclosed in Parliament. So what makes Gyanesh Kumar so particular?”
Gokhale additionally puzzled what the ballot panel was once looking for to hide through refusing to expose the expenditure. “What kind of public cash has been spent on Gyanesh Kumar’s visits that ECI is scared to expose it?” he requested.
He alleged that the Election Fee had change into “a black hollow” since Kumar took rate as CEC and accused the ballot panel of missing duty and transparency.
“Ever since Modi-Shah appointed Gyanesh Kumar as CEC, the ECI has change into a black hollow. A constitutional frame is being run as a private fiefdom of Modi-Shah and Gyanesh Kumar,” Gokhale alleged. “Be it SIR or spending of public cash, ECI has 0 duty or transparency,” he alleged.
Gokhale stated the ECI’s reaction raised questions over expenditure incurred at the CEC’s legit trip. “What precisely is ECI seeking to cover about Gyanesh Kumar’s journeys? We want solutions,” he stated.
In line with the replica of the answer shared through Gokhale, the appliance had sought knowledge associated with finished legit visits funded wholly or partially from public price range and didn’t search any potential itinerary, real-time motion main points or safety, escort or protocol preparations.
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