Madras HC rules that Co-operatives are public authority under RTI
22 May, 2012The Madras high court has ruled that a co-operative society registered under the Tamil Nadu Co-Operative Societies Act is controlled by the government and therefore it is covered under the definition of a ‘public authority’ as described under Section 2 (h) of Right to Information (RTI) Act.
Hearing the petition filed by the Rasipuram Cooperative Urban Bank Limited of Namakkal district and the Illyankudi Cooperative Urban Bank Limited of Sivagangai district, both seeking to declare that the two banks were not a public authority, Justice K. Chandru ruled against the petitioners and dismissed the petitions. This judgment rings a host of organisations under the RTI Act and enhances the scope of the RTI Act.