RTI filed seeking details of State’s compensation to injured Govindas

The activists have also sought details of the officer who is assigned to pay off these compensations

After restricting the height of human pyramid for Dahi Handi to 20ft for safety reasons, activist Swati Patil has now filed an RTI seeking details of compensation, the State government has borne in the last six years.

Patil along with Vihar Durve, another activist have filed an RTI application and sought from the government an year-wise information on the total amount it has paid to the Govindas who have survived after major injuries, while celebrating the Dahi Handi festival. They have asked the government to furnish details of the total amount it has paid to these Govindas since 2010 till date. The activists have also sought details of the officer who is assigned to pay off these compensations. In addition to this, the activists have also filed another RTI asking the government to give year-wise information of the amount it has paid to lawyers, senior counsels, advocate generals and other senior consultants, who appeared for the State in the cases related to Dahi Handi.

Both the RTI’s are filed in the Chief Minister’s office as well as the State Legal department, respectively. Speaking about the RTI’s, Patil said, “We have filed the RTI to ascertain the amount the government has paid to lawyers. We want to compare the amount paid to lawyers and that to the Govindas.”

“The petition over Dahi Handi is going on since last two years and there have been numerous hearings of the same, so the only aim of filing this RTI is that instead of paying to lawyers, the government could have given the same amount to these injured Govindas.”