Obtaining CCTV footage comes under the ambit of the Right to Information Act, so no department can deny it to an applicant unless it threatens security and sovereignty, Uttarakhand State Information Commissioner Yogesh Bhatt has said.
While delivering his order in a case, Bhatt has imposed a fine of Rs 25,000 on the public information officer of the district supply office of Haridwar for not providing the CCTV footage.
Roorkee resident Udayveer Singh had sought the recording of the CCTV camera installed in the Haridwar office from 10 am to 3 pm on May 25. Public information officer Poonam Saini had cited section 8(1)(g) of the RTI Act and said that there is no compulsion to give information.
“The video footage sought should be separately preserved before refusal to furnish information citing Section (8) of the RTI…There is no justification for refusing to hand over the footage under the RTI to the applicant without preserving it,” Bhatt said.
He said, “CCTV footage constitutes an electronic record accessible in digital format, and as such, cannot be denied upon request unless it poses a threat to the sovereignty, security, or personal safety of the state.”
State Information Commissioner Yogesh Bhatt has imposed a fine of Rs 25,000 on the public information officer of the district of Haridwar for not providing the CCTV footage. Roorkee resident Udayveer Singh had sought the recording of CCTV in the Haridwar office on May 25.
