RTI by BJP leader seeks financial details of Kedar serial

DEHRADUN: BJP leader from Rudraprayag Ajendra Ajay has filed an RTI with the Rudraprayag district administration seeking financial details and a copy of the contract between the state government and singer Kailash Kher's firm for making an 11-hour-long teleserial on Kedarnath.
Last year, the state government had roped in Kher for making the teleserial on Kedarnath and for which, according to an RTI reply, Rs 3.66 crore has already been paid from the disaster relief funds of Rudraprayag district in February 2016.The amount was paid to singer's firm Kailasha Entertainment Private Limited.
In the hill state's capital, the alleged multi-crores rupee splurge on the teleserial kicked off a political storm as the opposition party demanded a probe into the matter.
Talking to TOI, BJP leader Ajay said, “The state government must share all the details of the project in a transparent manner and also explain the funding process."
Ajay said that through the RTI filed on October 22 he has asked questions about the payments made, a copy of the CD and the criteria adopted for selection of the bids and the communication during the project.
Ajay also said that the government should also disclose details on the projects completed in Kedarnath after the 2013 flash floods. “All details must be in public domain such as tenders issued and the criteria followed for awarding work on building of tracks, helipad, purchase of equipment and payments made to contractors and contractual employees. These details should be put up on the website of the district administration,” said Ajay.
When contacted, officials of the Rudraprayag district administration said that they were not aware of any RTI filed by the BJP leader but were willing to provide details if an RTI seeks so.
The eleven-hour long teleserial is reported to have voiceovers and songs sung by a number of Bollywood celebrities including superstar Amitabh Bachchan, singers Shaan, Sonu Nigam, Suresh Wadkar, Shreya Ghoshal and Anup Jalota as well as contribution from actors like Anupam Kher and Hema Malini.