Copy of account opening form of a deceased was denied u/s 8 (1) (j) - PIO: Appellant has not produced any relevant documents such as death certificate, legal heir proof, etc. along with her RTI application - CIC: Appellant advised to furnish the documents
19 Jun, 2024O R D E R
1. The Appellant filed an RTI application dated 21.01.2022 seeking copy of account opening form of Late Rajmani Singh, whose Current Account no. is 8001374XXXX.
2. The CPIO replied vide letter dated 17.02.2022 and the same is reproduced as under :-
“The sought information is denied u/s 8 (1) (j) of the RTI Act, 2005.”
3. Dissatisfied with the response received from the CPIO, the Appellant filed a First Appeal dated 15.03.2022 alleging that the information provided was incomplete, false and misleading. The FAA’s order, if any, is not available on record.
4. Aggrieved with the non-receipt of any FAA’s order, the Appellant approached the Commission with the instant Second Appeal dated 25.07.2022.
5. The appellant remained absent during the hearing and on behalf of the respondent Mr. Suresh Prasad Singh, Manager Admin attended the hearing through video conference.
6. The respondent while defending their case inter alia submitted that the information sought is exempted to be shared under Section 8(1)(j) Notwithstanding anything contained in this Act, there shall be no obligation to give any citizen, information which relates to personal information the disclosure of which has no relationship to any public activity or interest, or which would cause unwarranted invasion of the privacy of the individual unless the Central Public Information Officer or the State Public Information Officer or the appellate authority, as the case may be, is satisfied that the larger public interest justifies the disclosure of such information: Provided that the information which cannot be denied to the Parliament or a State Legislature shall not be denied to any person. of the RTI Act. When queried by the Commission regarding the submission of proof of being a Legal Heir of the deceased Sh. Rajmani Singh by the Appellant, the Respondent replied that no such proof has been submitted by the Appellant.
7. The Commission after adverting to the facts and circumstances of the case, hearing the Respondent and perusal of records, observes that the Appellant has not produced any relevant documents such as death certificate, legal heir proof, etc. along with her RTI application. Therefore, the appellant is advised to furnish the aforesaid documentary proofs to the Respondent within 10 days from the date of receipt of this order. Further based on the aforesaid documentary proofs, the Respondent is directed to re-visit the RTI application and provide a correct revised reply to the appellant within 10 days from the date of the receipt of the documentary proofs from the appellant, under intimation to the Commission. With this observation and direction, the appeal is disposed of.
Copy of the decision be provided free of cost to the parties.
Sd/-
ANANDI RAMALINGAM
Information Commissioner
Citation: Neeta Singh v. Madhyanchal Gramin Bank, CIC/RUGBK/A/2022/136906; Date of Decision: 01.04.2024