On November 13, 2019, the Supreme Court, in a landmark judgement, held that the office of the Chief Justice of India (CJI) is a public authority and falls within the ambit at the Right to Information (RTI) Act, 2005. No office is above the law and the act gives the right to citizens to question institutions and offices showing resistance to the RTI Act. The SC, however, also said that transparency does not mean undermining judicial freedom and that office secrecy would remain intact during RTI. The five-judge bench, led by CJI, upheld the 2010 Delhi High Court verdict, under Act 124 of the constitution, and dismissed three appeals, filed by Secretary-General of the Supreme Court and the Central Public Information Officer (CPIO) of the apex court.
The 2019 SC Judgement
The CJI-led bench maintained that while no one wants a ‘system of darkness’, the judiciary cannot be destroyed in the name of transparency. It said that the Right to Privacy is an important aspect, which should be balanced with transparency, cautioning that RTI cannot be used as a tool of surveillance. The bench said that only the names of judges recommended by the collegium for appointment can be disclosed, not the reasons. The bench said the Supreme Court is a ‘public authority’ and the office of the CJI is a part of that. Judges discharge public duty, enjoying constitutional posts, and so the judiciary cannot function in total insulation.
Delhi High Court’s Judgement in 2010
On January 12, 2010, hearing an appeal, filed by the General Secretary of the Supreme Court, a three-judge bench had passed a landmark judgement holding that the Chief Justice’s office comes within the ambit of RTI and ‘judicial independence was not a judge’s privilege, but a responsibility cast upon him’.
Attorney General K.K. Venugopal, representing the Central Public Information Officer (CPIO) of the Supreme Court, then moved the Supreme Court challenging the order of the Delhi High Court and of the CIC, stating that such a declaration would hamper the judicial independence of the office.
——sidelight———
RTI Act, CIC, and Public Authority
* Right to Information (RTI) Act 2005 provides timely response to the citizens on their requests for government information.
* The major objective of the RTI Act is to promote transparency in the working condition of the government; thus, empowering the citizens.
* An RTI can be written on a simple paper addressing the Public Information Officer (PIO) of the concerned department along with postal order of ` 20.
* The Act applies to all States and Union Territories (UTs).
* Any request made to seek information from a ‘public authority’ should be replied within thirty days.
* Central information commission (CIC), established in 2005, is an authorised body that hears appeals from information seekers, not satisfied by the public authority and handles major issues regarding RTI Act.
Public Authority As per Section 2 (h), any authority or body or institution of self-government constituted under or by the constitution, or by any other parliamentary law, or by state legislature, or by a notification issued or order by the appropriate government, etc. is a public authority.
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