Bar Councils and Associations come under the purview of RTI Act: CIC [Read Order]

In a recent order, the Central Information Commissioner has ruled that Bar Councils and Associations, being established under the Advocates Act, come under the purview of the Right to Information Act.The CIC was hearing an appeal filed by Mr. Harinder Dhingra, who had sought information regarding the number of complaints filed against advocates under Section 35 of the Advocates Act in the past...

Disclosure of Personal details of RTI applicants; DoPT invites suggestions

The Department of Personnel and Training has invited comments from stakeholders on a Draft Office Memorandum, based on the ruling of the Kolkata High Court in Avishek Goenka v. Union of India, W.P. 33290(W) of 2013. In the case, High Court had pronounced it a duty of the authority to hide the information seeker’s personal details, particularly from...

Registrar of Cooperative Societies is a 'Public Authority' and required to provide information under RTI Act; Delhi HC [Read Judgment]

A division Bench of Delhi High Court Today held that Registrar of Cooperative Societies is a 'Public Authority' and hence duty bound to comply with the provisions of RTI Act and is required to provide information as provided for under Section 2(f) of the Act subject to the limitations enumerated under Section 8 of the RTI Act.The Bench comprising...

RTI: PIO not required to furnish Info which requires drawing of inferences or making assumptions: Kerala HC [Read Judgment]

In Muhammed Siyad P.A. & Ors. v. Sreejith Appu & Ors [W.A No:1135/2015 &other connected cases] the petitioners based on the position of their rank, claimed before the single bench,that they are eligible for consideration towards appointment to various posts of Assistant Executive Engineers existing in the Kerala State Electricity...

Every minister in union and states is 'public authority' under RTI Act; CIC [Read Order]

In a recent order, the Central Information Commission has ruled that subject to availability and convenience of the Minister at office in capital city or in his constituency, the ministers owe a moral and democratic responsibility to meet their voters or people in the constituency.The CIC ruled that Ministers in Union and State Governments are...

Personal Information of deserted Spouse cannot be revealed under RTI; CIC [Read Order]

CIC Prof Sridhar Acharyulu rejected the second appeal of a woman seeking personal information of her former husband whom she deserted 26 years ago. Ms S Chopra sought from Education department residential address, copy of service book, latest GPF statement, details of assets, nominee for GPF, family pension, insurance amount, CGHS, benefits that...

CIC directs National Law University to disclose comments of professors on their live-in relationship, in ‘larger public interest’ [Read Order]

Though LiveLaw got the copy of the Order while publishing the story, we didn't publish it since it contains the personal details of the parties. We have then requested the CIC to consider the removal of names from the Order. Now we are publishing the order since the CIC removed the names of the parties from the order.In a recent ruling, the CIC...

Delhi HC directs all petitions against non-compliance of CIC-verdicts to be registered afresh [Read Order]

In a Writ Petition that came up challenging an order of the Central Information Commission (CIC) the Delhi High Court Single Bench Justice Manmohan directed Registry of the Central Information Commission to evolve a procedure by virtue of which applications for non-compliance of CIC orders are numbered and different applications are placed in...

New Central Information Commissioners Appointed

Shri Amitava Bhattacharyya, Indian Administrative Service, (GJ:1980), retired Chairman, Staff Selection Commission, Shri Bimal Julka, Indian Administrative Service, (MP:1979), retired Secretary, Ministry of Information and Broadcasting and Shri Divya Prakash Sinha, Indian Police Serve (MT: 1979), retired Secretary (Security), Cabinet Secretariat,...

No one knows how system of long summer vacations started in Supreme Court; CIC affirms RTI response from SC [Read Order]

Disposing of an appeal filed by RTI Activist Subhash Chandra Agrawal, Chief Information Commissioner Radha Krishna Mathur noted that both, the Department of Justice and the Supreme Court CPIO does not hold record of the tradition of summer vacations in the Supreme Court.The appellant, Mr. Agrawal had sought complete information, together with...

CIC raps CPIO and school principal for disclosing minor’s information under RTI; records contempt against applicant [Read Order]

The Central Information Commission on Monday came down heavily on the Central Public Information Officer, and the Principal of a school, for disclosing information of a minor to an applicant under the Right to Information Act.CIC Madhubhashi Sridhar opined that the CPIO of DDE had given all the information to the appellant, without following the...

CMO is not post office to transfer RTIs : CIC [Read Order]

When Government formulated a scheme to give pensions to old aged widows and disabled persons below the poverty line and started paying pension, it is their duty to continue the payment or inform them pensions are scrapped as they do not afford to pay. Non-payment of pension and indecision about it reflects serious governance crisis. Mr. Charanjit...