PIO is not bound to be guided by the views of third party for disclosure of information
10 Jul, 2013Background
The appellant filed an application under the Right to Information (RTI) Act with the Indian Bureau of Mines (IBM) seeking copy of the letter written by the IBM to a particular mining entity for some violations and the reply given by that entity. The appellant also wanted to know the details of those mines which were located on revenue or forest land in the Nagpur region. The Public Information Officer (PIO) denied the information stating that the third party had objection to the disclosure of the information.
Proceedings
During the hearing the before Central Information Commission (CIC), the respondent submitted that since the third party had not given his consent for the disclosure of the information it should not be disclosed. The CIC held that it was not clear why the reply given by the company to a show cause notice should be considered by the PIO to be third party information under section 11(1) Where a Central Public Information Officer or a State Public Information Officer, as the case may be, intends to disclose any information or record, or part thereof on a request made under this Act, which relates to or has been supplied by a third party and has been treated as confidential by that third party, the Central Public Information Officer or State Public Information Officer, as the case may be, shall, within five days from the receipt of the request, give a written notice to such third party of the request and of the fact that the Central Public Information Officer or State Public Information Officer, as the case may be, intends to disclose the information or record, or part thereof, and invite the third party to make a submission in writing or orally, regarding whether the information should be disclosed, and such submission of the third party shall be kept in view while taking a decision about disclosure of information: Where a Central Public Information Officer or a State Public Information Officer, as the case may be, intends to disclose any information or record, or part thereof on a request made under this Act, which relates to or has been supplied by a third party and has been treated as confidential by that third party, the Central Public Information Officer or State Public Information Officer, as the case may be, shall, within five days from the receipt of the request, give a written notice to such third party of the request and of the fact that the Central Public Information Officer or State Public Information Officer, as the case may be, intends to disclose the information or record, or part thereof, and invite the third party to make a submission in writing or orally, regarding whether the information should be disclosed, and such submission of the third party shall be kept in view while taking a decision about disclosure of information: of the RTI Act. The entire exchange between the IBM and the mining entity is a part of a statutory exercise and the explanation given to the show cause notice is neither a confidential document nor a personal one. The CIC ruled that the PIO was not right in treating it as third party information within the meaning of section 11(1) Where a Central Public Information Officer or a State Public Information Officer, as the case may be, intends to disclose any information or record, or part thereof on a request made under this Act, which relates to or has been supplied by a third party and has been treated as confidential by that third party, the Central Public Information Officer or State Public Information Officer, as the case may be, shall, within five days from the receipt of the request, give a written notice to such third party of the request and of the fact that the Central Public Information Officer or State Public Information Officer, as the case may be, intends to disclose the information or record, or part thereof, and invite the third party to make a submission in writing or orally, regarding whether the information should be disclosed, and such submission of the third party shall be kept in view while taking a decision about disclosure of information: Where a Central Public Information Officer or a State Public Information Officer, as the case may be, intends to disclose any information or record, or part thereof on a request made under this Act, which relates to or has been supplied by a third party and has been treated as confidential by that third party, the Central Public Information Officer or State Public Information Officer, as the case may be, shall, within five days from the receipt of the request, give a written notice to such third party of the request and of the fact that the Central Public Information Officer or State Public Information Officer, as the case may be, intends to disclose the information or record, or part thereof, and invite the third party to make a submission in writing or orally, regarding whether the information should be disclosed, and such submission of the third party shall be kept in view while taking a decision about disclosure of information: of the RTI Act. The Commission stated that even if the PIO had consulted the party concerned, he was not bound to be guided by its views; he was expected to exercise his own mind and come to a conclusion.
View of CIC
The Commission noted that the mining activity has evoked considerable concerns from the public in recent years for a variety of reasons including its potential for environmental pollution and illegal exploitation of public resources. The CIC directed the PIO to disclose the attested copy of the reply given by the entity in response to their show cause notice along with the enclosures. If the PIO decided not to disclose the same then he has to pass a speaking order in this context.
Citation: Mr. R Y Kutumbe v. Indian Bureau of Mines in File No. CIC/SM/A/2013/000297
RTI Citation : RTIFI/2013/CIC/1435
Click here to view original RTI order of Court / Information Commission