RIGHT TO INFORMATION (r2i)

part A I DECISIONS OF THE SUPREME COURT

• Parties under RTI: Supreme Court notice to Centre,
  Election Commission

The Supreme Court on 15^th April, 2019 issued
notice to the Centre, the Election Commission and six national political
parties – the BJP, the Indian National Congress, NCP, CPI, CPI(M) and BSP – on
a writ petition that political parties be brought under the ambit of the Right
to Information Act. The petitioner submitted that political parties held
significant power and hold over the legislature and the executive as well as
their own candidates. And this hold had been made absolute because of the power
of political parties to disqualify elected MPs and MLAs under the Constitution
(anti-defection law). He also submitted that political parties received huge
sums of money from the public as donations and were not liable to pay any taxes
and must, therefore, be made accountable to the public.

The
petitioner pointed out that the political parties had defied the CIC order for
several years and sought greater transparency and accountability in the
functioning of all recognised national and regional political parties in the
country. Great harm was being caused to public interest due to lack of
transparency in the political system and the political parties; the electoral
system was generating huge amounts of black money and large sums were being
spent on every election, thus leading to violation of the citizen’s rights
under Article 14, 19(1)(a) and 21 of the Constitution.

(Source:https://www.deccanchronicle.com/nation/current-affairs/160419/parties-under-rti-supreme-court-notice-to-centre-election-commission.html)

• Centre can’t withhold docs under RTI citing national
  security, says Supreme Court

The
Supreme Court on 10^th April, 2019 said the Centre cannot withhold
documents from disclosure under the RTI Act citing national security if it is
established that retention of such information produces greater harm than
disclosing it.

The
observation was made by Justice K.M. Joseph in his 38-page separate but
concurring judgement in which the Supreme Court allowed the plea relying on
leaked documents for seeking review of its judgement on the Rafale fighter jet
deal with France. It dismissed the government’s preliminary objections claiming
“privilege” over them.

Justice
Joseph said the RTI Act through section 8(2) has conferred upon the citizens a
“priceless right by clothing them” with the right to demand information even in
respect of such matters as security of the country and matters relating to
relations with a foreign state.

“No
doubt, information is not to be given for the mere asking. The applicant must
establish that withholding of such information produces greater harm than
disclosing it,” Justice Joseph said.

He
said the premise for disclosure in a matter relating to security and
relationship with a foreign state is public interest.

“Right
to justice is immutable. It is inalienable. The demands it has made over other
interests has been so overwhelming that it forms the foundation of all
civilised nations. The evolution of law itself is founded upon the recognition
of right to justice as an indispensable hallmark of a fully evolved nation.

“The
Preamble to the Constitution proclaims justice – social, economic or political,
as the goal to be achieved. It is the duty of every State to provide for a fair
and effective system of administration of justice. Judicial review is, in fact,
recognised as a basic feature of the Constitution,” he added.

“The
most important aspect in a justice delivery system is the ability of a party to
successfully establish the case based on materials. Subject to exceptions, it
is settled beyond doubt that any person can set the criminal law into motion.
It is equally indisputable, however, that among the seemingly insuperable
obstacles a litigant faces are limitations on the ability to prove the case
with evidence and, more importantly, relevant evidence.

“Ability
to secure evidence thus forms the most important aspect in ensuring the triumph
of truth and justice. It is imperative therefore that section 8(2) must be
viewed in the said context. Its impact on the operation on the shield of
privilege is unmistakable,” he said.

Justice
Joseph said that a citizen can get a certified copy of a document under the RTI
Act even if the matter pertains to security or relationship with a foreign
nation if a case is made out. If such a document is produced before the Court,
then surely a claim for privilege cannot be made by the government.

“It is
clear that under the Right to Information Act, a citizen can get a certified
copy of a document under section 8(2) of the RTI Act even if the matter
pertains to security or relationship with a foreign nation, if a case is made
out thereunder. If such a document is produced surely a claim for privilege
could not lie,” he said.

(Source:https://www.ptcnews.tv/centre-cant-withhold-docs-under-rti-citing-national-security-says-supreme-court/)

part b I RTI ACT, 2005

• RTI Act supersedes Official Secrets Act

Delivering
a separate judgement in the Rafale case, Justice K.M. Joseph has made the
following observations:

• The Right to Information Act confers on ordinary citizens
  the ‘priceless right’ to demand information even in matters affecting national
  security and relations with a foreign state;

• Justice Joseph’s
  judgement countered the claim made by the government for privilege over Rafale
  purchase documents under the Official Secrets Act (OSA), saying it affected
  national security and relations with France;

• The Right to
  Information (RTI) Act overawes the OSA. Under section 8(2) of the RTI Act, the
  government cannot refuse information if disclosure in public interest
  overshadows certain ‘protected interests.’

Justice
Joseph in his judgement has stated that through section 8(2) of the RTI Act,
Parliament has appreciated that it may be necessary to pit one interest against
another and to compare the relative harm and then decide either to disclose or
to decline information. If higher public interest is established, it is the
will of Parliament that the greater good should prevail though at the cost of
lesser harm being still occasioned.

(Source:https://currentaffairs.gktoday.in/tags/right-to-information-act)

part c I INFORMATION ON
& AROUND

• Only 24% government vacancies filled in
  past 5 years: RTI

Only 8,23,107 positions (about 24%) have got filled out of
more than 33 lakh job vacancies in the State over the last five years,
according to a Right to Information (RTI) query.

The query was sought specifically for various agencies and
institutions run by the State government. It was also stated that more than 35
lakh persons have registered themselves as ‘unemployed’, according to the Directorate
of Skill Development, Employment and Entrepreneurship of the State government.

The information revealed that 2014 had the least percentage
of job positions filled at 10. However, in the succeeding years positions were
filled at only 22%, 25%, 54% and 25% in the years 2015, 2016, 2017 and 2018,
respectively.

For the year 2019, 48,292 positions had been filled out of
1,16,281 vacancies. Meanwhile, 7,26,982 persons had been registered as
unemployed in 2018.

(Source:https://www.asianage.com/metros/mumbai/
210419/only-24-per-cent-govt-vacancies-filled-in-past-5-years-rti.html)

• No record of pathology labs in city: BMC’s reply to RTI
  query

The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation’s (BMC) Public Health
Department does not have a record of the number of pathology laboratories in
the city, its response to a Right to Information (RTI) application has
revealed.

Responding to the plea seeking a list of pathology
laboratories, their owners, staff pathologists and contact details in the city,
officials said since the laboratories are not registered under BMC, the
information is not maintained by them.

The civic body’s failure to collect this information is in
contravention of a 2018 directive by the Directorate?of Medical Education and
Research (DMER), which asked all civic bodies in the State to submit a detailed
report of pathology laboratories in order to keep a check on illegal clinics.

(Source:https://www.hindustantimes.com/mumbai-news/no-record-of-pathology-labs-in-city-bmc-s-reply-to-rti-query/story-UIxySSakkKot51UGIXj96H.html)

• Electoral bonds of Rs. 10 lakhs, Rs. 1 crore dominate
  donations: RTI application

Almost 99% of donations received by political parties between
March, 2018 and January, 2019 were as electoral bonds of Rs. 10 lakhs and Rs. 1
crore, a social worker has reportedly found through an RTI application.

Donors purchased bonds worth Rs. 1,407.09 crores of which Rs.
1,403.90 crores were in the highest denominations of  Rs. 10 lakhs and Rs 1 crore, said Chandrashekhar Goud, who got the data from
the State Bank of India through an RTI query.

The donors bought 1,459 electoral bonds of the denomination
of Rs. 10 lakhs and 1,258 bonds of Rs. 1 crore denomination. They purchased 318
bonds of Rs. 1 lakh, 12 bonds of Rs. 10,000 and 24 bonds of Rs. 1,000
denomination.

Parties redeemed electoral bonds worth Rs. 1,395.89 crores.

(Source:https://www.business-standard.com/article/current-affairs/electoral-bonds-of-rs-10-lakh-rs-1-cr-dominate-donations-rti-application-119041400559_1.html)

• Can’t deny AI
  disinvestment info under RTI: CIC

The Central Information Commission (CIC) has directed the
Civil Aviation Ministry to provide Lucknow-based activist Nutan Thakur
information regarding the disinvestment of Air India (AI).

The Public Information Officer (PIO) of the Ministry had,
under section 8(1)(i) of the RTI Act, denied Thakur information related to the
records of the deliberations of the Cabinet.

According to the PIO, the Cabinet had in principle approved
the proposed disinvestment of the national carrier, though the process had not
been completed.

Information Commissioner Divya Prakash
Sinha said that the Ministry had grossly erred in invoking section 8(1)(i) of
the RTI Act to deny information to Thakur, despite the PIO himself admitting to
the Cabinet decision in this regard.

The Commission directed the PIO to provide Thakur within 15
days the information available with the Ministry and send it a compliance
report.

(Source:https://www.moneylife.in/article/cant-deny-ai-disinvestment-info-under-rti-cic/56732.html)

part D I RTI CLINIC –
SUCCESS STORY

The BCAS RTI Clinic was approached by Capt. R. Khadiwal
(Retd.) whose tenure of service was miscalculated as 26 years instead of the
correct tenure of 37 years for purposes of calculation of retirement benefits.
The matter was escalated to a second appeal with the CIC. Air India’s CPIO was
penalised on grounds of delay in providing information; besides, the
Appellant’s claim for compensation of expenses for attending the hearings were
accepted by the CIC’s order.