CBI should be brought under RTI Act: R Srikumar

NEW DELHI: Advocating for bringing CBI under purview of RTI Act, former Vigilance Commissioner R Srikumar today said the probe agency will never get "hurt" by revealing the truth it gathered in its probe and should win heart of the people by opening itself for public scrutiny.

"The CBI got exemption from RTI Act directly from the government. They (CBI) did not involve the CVC while seeking complete exemption from the RTI Act. "As a public institution serving a public cause, CBI should stop taking shelter of secrecy under the RTI Act, and open itself for public scrutiny," Srikumar told PTI.

His comments come a day after former West Bengal Governor Gopalkrishna Gandhi hit out at CBI for its being "clothed in opacity, ornamented by secrecy and finally perfumed by mystery."

"For a short time, the CBI came under the RTI Act. The heavens did not fall during that time. But the triple wrappings of opacity, secrecy and mystery made it move to be taken out of the purview of the RTI Act. "This is a great pity. The CBI is about investigations into corruption and certain crimes. It is not a security or intelligence agency," Gandhi had said addressing a CBI function here.

The Department of Personnel and Training (DoPT), nodal agency for implementation of the RTI Act, had on June 9, 2011 issued a notification exempting the CBI from the purview of the transparency law. Srikumar, also a former IPS officer and having an experience of working in CBI, accused the agency of rejecting one of the Central Vigilance Commission's suggestion of being transparent with its probe.