On Friday, D Raj Kumar, who filed the RTI application seeking details about the meeting, filed an appeal before the State Information Commission seeking disciplinary action against B Rajasoundari, the Superintendent of Vellore Central Prison for Women, after she flatly denied that any such event took place. “In response to your query, let me inform that on March 14, 2008 and March 19, 2008, nobody had visited the prisoner under contention,” SP B Rajasoundari had said in her reply to the RTI application on April 11.

But since Priyanka and the Congress party have validated that the meeting did take place, the applicant, who is the son of Nalini’s counsel Duraisamy, has now sought disciplinary action against SP B Rajasoundari for furnishing false information. Interestingly, the reply was dated April 11, four days before the news about the meeting was flashed across the country.

According to Duraisamy, the date on the reply read April 11 though it was received only on April 22. “There are formalities inside the prison that might have delayed dispatch of the reply. Also, April 12, 13 and 14th were holidays, which could be the reason for the delay,” he said.

Police sources speculate that the prison superintendent might have prepared the response, with the knowledge of higher ups in the department and even state Government, before the news about the meeting became an issue of national interest. Hence, the contradiction and the present predicament for the official. However, that she gave false information was enough to put her in the dock under the provisions of the Act, sources added.

Raj Kumar had filed the application on April 8, seeking details about the visit. A reply from the official said no such meeting took place. He filed another application on April 11 with the Home Secretary for obtaining the information, which was forwarded to the prison superintendent on April 16.

Meanwhile, disputing Rajasoundari’s version, the Congress party on Friday said it stood by what it had stated earlier on this issue. “I am not aware of what the Jail Superintendent has said. But whatever we have said, we stand by it,” AICC spokesperson Abhishek Manu Singhvi said in New Delhi. Following confirmation of the meeting by Priyanka, the party had also confirmed it appealing to people to respect “privacy”.