After 10 years and 138 hearings, RTI activist jailed for refusal to keep standing acquitted

CHENNAI: A court Tuesday acquitted a civic rights activist who fought a legal battle for 10 years running into 138 court hearings after being jailed for refusing to stand before the state information commission (SIC) during a hearing, reports Ram Sundaram. The court acquitted him of charges under various sections of IPC, including obstructing a public servant and criminal intimidation.

The case stemmed from a nearly decade-old RTI petition of Siva Elango of anti-corruption group Satta Panchayat Iyakkam , seeking details of then Tamil Nadu CM J Jayalalithaa's advertisement expenses. When govt refused to disclose the information, Elango went into appeal.

At the hearing on Jan 7, 2015, chief information commissioner K S Sripathi and former district judge S F Akbar asked Elango to stand throughout while presenting his case. Elango refused, saying that no law required appellants to stand during hearings. Sripathi refused to proceed unless Elango complied, ultimately dismissing the case without hearing his argument. Elango then sat in protest leading to a police complaint. He was arrested and charged and jailed the same day. After being released on bail, Elango's legal fight continued for 10 years.