Right to Information Act, 2005

Retired civil servants filed writ petitions under Article 32 seeking a mandamus directing the Union, State Governments and Union Territories to create an independent Civil Services Board (CSB), to fix a minimum tenure for civil servants, and to require recording of all oral instructions in writing. The Court examined c…

The employee of Canara Bank filed an RTI application under Section 6 seeking details of transfers and postings of all clerical staff from 2002 to 2006, which included personal data of individual employees. The bank’s Public Information Officer rejected the request, invoking the exemption under Section 8(1)(j) of the RT…

The Supreme Court considered a batch of writ petitions filed by several banks challenging the Reserve Bank of India's directions to disclose confidential information under the Right to Information Act, 2005. The banks argued that the directions conflicted with Section 8 of the RTI Act, the RBI Act and the Banking Regul…

Dr. Sushil Kumar Tripathi was appointed as Assistant Professor in the Department of Political Science of Jagadguru Ram Bhadracharya Handicapped University under a UGC grant for the Tenth Five Year Plan. After protesting a monthly deduction of Rs.5,000 from his salary, his annual increments were stopped and the universi…

The appellant, Harkirat Singh Ghuman, contested the 2019 Punjab/Haryana Superior Judicial Service examination, alleging procedural irregularities such as a missing question in Paper V (Criminal Law), absence of an OMR sheet and transparent answer key for Paper VI (General Knowledge), non‑provision of Bare Acts, and den…

The Assam Public Service Commission advertised a combined competitive examination with a reservation of 3% for physically disabled candidates. Respondent No.1, a physically disabled applicant, applied under the original advertisement but did not submit the required disability certificate by the stipulated deadline, nor…

The appellants, prominent badminton players and their coach, were accused in a private complaint of falsifying birth records to gain entry into age‑restricted tournaments, leading to the registration of an FIR under Sections 420, 468, 471 and 34 IPC. The complaint relied mainly on an unauthenticated 1996 GPF nomination…

The respondent, a civil servant of Jharkhand, was dismissed after disciplinary proceedings for alleged misconduct, including financial irregularities and forgery. The draft charge‑sheet and a proposal to suspend him were placed before the Chief Minister, who approved the proposal on 21 March 2014, after which the charg…

Ferani Hotels Pvt. Ltd. (appellant) entered into a development agreement with Mr. Nusli Neville Wadia (respondent No.3), who later terminated the agreement and sought certified copies of the development plans, layouts and related documents filed with the Municipal Corporation of Greater Mumbai under the Right to Inform…

Aseer Jamal filed a writ petition under Article 32 seeking directions to the Union, States and Union Territories to create an effective mechanism for illiterate and visually impaired persons to obtain information under the Right to Information Act, 2005. The petitioner argued that Section 6(1) of the Act discriminates …

The Supreme Court examined the appointment of Dr. M.S. Patil, a general‑category candidate, as Reader in the Kannada Department of Gulbarga University, a post that was expressly reserved for Group B candidates. The High Court had set aside his appointment on grounds of illegal reservation breach and alleged favouritism…

The Supreme Court examined writ petitions filed by Common Cause and other NGOs seeking a declaration that Rule 10(1) and Rule 10(4)(i) of the Search Committee Rules, 2014 were ultra vires the Lokpal and Lokayuktas Act, 2013 and that the appointment process for the Lokpal should be stayed until the pending Amendment Bil…

The appellant, an OBC candidate, applied for the Assam Civil Service through the Assam Public Service Commission and secured a higher merit score than many open‑category candidates, yet was not placed in his preferred service. He challenged the commission’s selection, arguing that more meritorious reserved‑category can…

Subhash Chandra Agrawal filed a RTI application with the Central Public Information Officer (CPIO) of the Supreme Court seeking copies of files and correspondence concerning the appointment and transfer of judges, and asked that Section 6(3) of the RTI Act not be invoked. The CPIO replied that such records were not mai…

The Supreme Court examined the allotment of three plots of government land by the City and Industrial Development Corporation (CIDCO) to entities linked to the same proprietor. The respondents had obtained the plots through private applications without any public tender, prompting CIDCO to cancel the allotments on grou…

The appellants, a group of farmers, allowed the Sulthan Bathery Panchayat (later a municipality) to use a portion of their agricultural land for a bypass road on the promise of compensation, which was never paid. No formal acquisition, transfer, or documented voluntary surrender was produced by the Panchayat or the Pub…

Rahmat Khan, a journalist and social worker, exposed alleged misappropriation of government grants to madrasas in Amravati district and filed RTI applications and complaints against officials. In retaliation, three FIRs were lodged against him under various IPC sections, and the Deputy Commissioner of Police issued an …

The appellant, a shareholder and former director of Seva Vikas Co-operative Bank, filed FIR No. 806 of 2019 alleging financial fraud by the bank's chief executive and former chairperson based on a forensic audit report. The Bombay High Court quashed the FIR, holding that Section 81(5B) of the Maharashtra Co-operative S…

Four members of a political party filed a public‑interest writ petition under Article 32 of the Constitution alleging that the Chief Minister of Sikkim had amassed assets disproportionate to his known income and misappropriated public funds. They sought a mandamus directing the Central Bureau of Investigation to launch…

The appellant, Aayush Buildwell Pvt. Ltd., applied for a half‑acre institutional plot advertised by the Haryana Urban Development Authority (HUDA) and paid earnest money, but was unsuccessful and had the money refunded. The High Court set aside the allotments made to private respondents, finding procedural irregulariti…

The case arose from a reference to a nine-judge bench to determine whether the right to privacy is a constitutionally protected fundamental right under the Indian Constitution, particularly in light of the Aadhaar scheme's collection of biometric data. The petitioners argued that privacy is an intrinsic part of the rig…

The appellant, a watchman employed since 1992, was terminated in 2002 without notice or compliance with the Industrial Disputes Act, 1947. He claimed continuous service under Section 25B and sought reinstatement; the Labour Court and a Single Judge affirmed his right to reinstatement but denied backwages. The Division …

Kamlesh Rani Bhatla, an Assistant Teacher, resigned on 22 March 2012 to contest a municipal election; her resignation was accepted on 29 March 2012. After losing the election, she applied on 21 April 2012 to withdraw her resignation, but the application remained pending for years. She filed a writ petition, and the Del…

The appellant, an Executive Engineer in Jammu and Kashmir's Rural Engineering Wing, was prematurely retired on the recommendation of a High Powered Review Committee that alleged he owned assets disproportionate to his known income and had issued back‑dated technical sanctions. The appellant challenged the retirement, a…

Eighty‑eight workmen employed as Tyndals at Kenduadih Colliery of BCCL sought regularisation. The Industrial Tribunal (1996) ordered their absorption within a year, and the Jharkhand High Court (2004) modified the award, directing that whenever the management hires regular workmen, preference must be given to these wor…

The appellants, appointed as Land Records Inspectors (LRIs) through a limited departmental examination for vacancies that arose in 2008‑09, 2009‑10 and 2010‑11, were placed in seniority lists dated 2012‑14 and later treated as appointed in 2014‑15. They claimed seniority should be computed from the year the vacancy aro…

The appellants challenged the inclusion of candidates holding a two‑year Diploma in Health Inspectors Course (DHIC) in the short‑list for the post of Junior Health Inspector Grade‑II in the Municipal Common Service, arguing that DHIC was a higher qualification and should be treated as equivalent under Rule 10(a)(ii) of…

Daljit Singh Grewal, a District Commander in the Punjab Home Guards, sought promotion to Battalion Commander but was denied due to adverse entries in his Annual Confidential Reports (ACR) that downgraded his performance. He filed multiple representations, a civil suit (which was decreed in his favour) and a writ petiti…

The appellant, a police constable, was summoned to the Senior Superintendent's office and allegedly detained illegally for six days during which he suffered severe genital mutilation and other injuries, as confirmed by medical reports. His wife complained to the police seeking registration of an FIR against the officia…

The appellants’ land in Chandapora was acquired under the Jammu & Kashmir Land Acquisition Act, 1934 for the resettlement of Dal dwellers and they were awarded Rs 2,50,000 per Kanai, whereas owners of identical lands in the adjacent villages of Bhagichandpora and Pazwalpora received Rs 4,00,000 per Kanai. The appellant…

The plaintiff, a resident of Village Fakarhedi, challenged the appointment of Defendant No.3 as a Rajiv Gandhi Rural LPG distributor, alleging that the appointment was based on a fraudulent domicile certificate. The trial court dismissed the plaintiff's suit ex parte, and the first appellate court affirmed that dismiss…

M/s Bisco Limited imported 595 cases of second‑hand steel‑mill machinery to be stored in a notified public bonded warehouse. Because heavy rain made the warehouse inaccessible, the appellant obtained permission from the Superintendent under Section 64(d) to unload 264 cases outside the warehouse but within its factory …

Unsuccessful candidates of the 2010 Civil Services Preliminary Examination filed a writ petition under Art. 226 seeking the UPSC to disclose raw and scaled marks, cut‑off marks, scaling methodology, model answers and the complete result. The Delhi High Court, both Single and Division Benches, directed UPSC to provide t…

The petitioner filed a writ petition under Article 32 seeking a direction that all State governments upload copies of chargesheets filed under Section 173 of the Criminal Procedure Code on their websites, invoking the transparency principle established in Youth Bar Association of India v. Union of India. The petition r…

The appellant, a father, lost his five‑year‑old son when a tanker struck the boy as they walked to school on a road that had no footpath or pedestrian crossing. The father filed a claim for Rs 25,00,000 before the Motor Accident Claims Tribunal, which awarded Rs 7,82,000 with interest; the High Court later reduced the …

The appellant, Balakram, was charged with murder and attempted murder and, after the prosecution's witness (the investigating officer) was examined, sought to produce copies of pages from the police diary obtained under the Right to Information Act to confront the officer. The trial court rejected the application, the …

Common Cause and an RTI activist filed a writ petition under Article 32 seeking to quash the appointment of Mr. Nageshwar Rao as interim Director of the CBI and to compel the Union of India to appoint a regular Director in accordance with Section 4A of the Delhi Special Police Establishment Act, 1946. They also demande…

The appellants, members of a Delhi cooperative housing society, were subject to a resolution for their expulsion which was sent to the Registrar of Co‑operative Societies for approval as required by the Delhi Co‑operative Societies Act, 1972 and Rules, 1973. The society delayed submitting its records for about seven ye…

The Supreme Court examined the Lodha Committee's recommendations for reforming the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) after a public interest litigation. It held that the Committee's report is merely recommendatory and does not bind the BCCI unless the Court directs it, and that the recommendations do not inf…

The appellant, Surajsinh alias Sonu Surajsinh, was convicted for kidnapping a seven‑year‑old boy from Ahmedabad and demanding a ransom of Rs 10 lakh, leading to the child's recovery in Dausa, Rajasthan. The trial court found the child’s testimony reliable and corroborated by police officers, other witnesses and call‑de…

The appellant, former MD and CEO of Ricoh India Ltd., was served a show‑cause notice by SEBI alleging violations of the SEBI Act and the PFUTP Regulations based on an investigation report. The appellant demanded the full investigation report, but SEBI claimed it was an internal document not subject to disclosure. The S…

The appellant, an advocate, was selected for appointment as a Junior Civil Judge but was not appointed because the State Government relied on a police report alleging her and her husband’s links to a banned political party. The High Court dismissed her writ petition, holding that judicial review was unavailable and tha…

The appellants, a group of educational societies running D.A.V. colleges and schools, challenged the applicability of the Right to Information Act, 2005, arguing that they were not public authorities because they were NGOs not substantially financed by the government. The central issue was whether NGOs that receive sub…

Kishan Chand Jain filed a writ petition under Article 32 seeking a direction that public authorities implement the proactive disclosure obligations under Section 4 of the Right to Information Act, 2005. The Union of India responded by detailing the various guidelines, task forces, and memoranda issued by the Department…

B.L.A. Industries Private Limited sought relief under Article 32, contending that it had not been allocated a coal block through the illegal Screening Committee process that the Supreme Court had struck down in the Manohar Lal Sharma judgments. The petitioner had applied for a mining lease to the Madhya Pradesh State G…

The Bengaluru Development Authority (BDA) sought an environmental clearance (EC) for its Peripheral Ring Road (PRR) project, which was later quashed by the National Green Tribunal (NGT) on the ground that the primary data used in the Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) report was over three years old and the Terms of…

The State of Bihar appealed a High Court order that had directed the appointment of Madhu Kant Ranjan as constable with five extra marks for his NCC ‘B’ certificate. The advertisement for the 2004 constable recruitment required candidates to submit self‑attested photocopies of all documents, including the NCC certifica…

The Supreme Court examined whether the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) could refuse to disclose information obtained from banks under the Right to Information (RTI) Act on the grounds of fiduciary relationship, economic interest, or commercial confidence. The Court held that RBI does not have a fiduciary relationship with …

The petitioners, Citizens for Green Dehradun, challenged Stage‑I forest clearances for a highway project and were directed by the Supreme Court to approach the National Green Tribunal (NGT). They filed an original application before the NGT under Section 14, which was dismissed on the ground that they were circumventin…

The Competition Commission of India (CCI) advertised vacancies for Deputy Director (Law) and stipulated that the written test would carry 80% of the marks and the interview 20%, with minimum qualifying marks of 50% (general) and 40% (reserved) for the written test. After the written test and interview, the CCI fixed a …

The Supreme Court considered a batch of writ petitions challenging preventive detention orders issued under the Conservation of Foreign Exchange and Prevention of Smuggling Activities Act, 1974 (COFEPOSA) and the National Security Act, 1980. The petitioners, many of whom had absconded or evaded execution of the orders,…

R.K. Jain filed an RTI application seeking copies of the Annual Confidential Report (ACR) of Ms. Jyoti Balasundaram, a Member of CESTAT, and the follow‑up action on alleged integrity issues. The Central Public Information Officer denied the request under Section 8(1)(j) of the RTI Act, deeming the ACR "personal informa…

The Special Police Establishment (SPE) of Madhya Pradesh, constituted under the 1947 Act to investigate corruption‑related offences, was directed by the High Court to disclose information sought by a Town Inspector under the Right to Information Act, 2005 (RTI). The appellant argued that a 2011 State Government notific…

The petitioners filed a writ petition under Article 32 alleging that the Central Information Commission (CIC) and several State Information Commissions (SICs) had large backlogs because vacancies of Information Commissioners were not filled promptly and the appointment process lacked transparency. The Court examined wh…

Pradip Kumar, a Judicial Member of the Customs, Excise and Service Tax Appellate Tribunal (CESTAT) appointed directly from the Bar, was discharged from service on 20 November 2009 under Rule 8(3) of the Tribunal Rules, allegedly in response to a complaint by members of the Bar and a report by the President of CESTAT. T…

Vinay Sharma, a death‑row convict in the Nirbhaya case, filed a writ petition under Article 32 challenging the President's rejection of his mercy petition on grounds of alleged non‑consideration of relevant documents, torture, mental illness, illegal solitary confinement and bias. The petition also claimed that the pet…

The Bihar Public Service Commission (BPSC) was petitioned under the Right to Information Act, 2005 for the names, designations and addresses of members of its interview board. While the Commission disclosed most of the requested information, it refused to reveal the interviewers' details, invoking Section 8(1)(g) of th…

Manohar, a former Superintendent and Public Information Officer, was recommended for disciplinary action by the Maharashtra State Information Commission for allegedly failing to provide information under the Right to Information Act, 2005. The Commission issued its order without hearing the officer, despite his request…

The respondent, Subhash Chandra Agarwal, filed three RTI applications seeking information about (1) correspondence regarding the appointment of three Supreme Court judges who superseded seniority, (2) declaration of assets by judges pursuant to a 1997 resolution, and (3) correspondence about a Union Minister allegedly …

The Supreme Court examined the appropriate procedure for police to conduct media briefings during ongoing criminal investigations, balancing the public’s right to information under Article 19(1)(a) with the accused’s presumption of innocence and victims’ privacy under Article 21. An amicus curiae was appointed who coll…

Karan Singh, a former conductor with Delhi Transport Corporation (DTC), opted for the corporation's Voluntary Retirement Scheme in 1993 after completing ten years of service, but was denied a pension. He challenged the denial before the Central Administrative Tribunal, which held that his service, including a training …

The petition challenged the constitutional validity of Sections 12(5), 12(6), 15(5) and 15(6) of the Right to Information Act, 2005, which prescribe the eligibility criteria for appointing Chief Information Commissioners and Information Commissioners. The petitioner argued that the provisions were vague, lacked specifi…

The Chief Information Commissioner of Manipur and another filed two RTI applications under Section 6 seeking details of magisterial inquiries, but received no response from the State Public Information Officer. They lodged complaints under Section 18, prompting the Commissioner to direct the officer to disclose the inf…

The appellant, a former Madhya Pradesh State Service teacher, joined the Kendriya Vidyalaya Sangathan (KVS) on 23 September 1987 and was confirmed on 23 September 1989. He claimed pay protection under the Government of India Order dated 7 August 1989, which was to take effect from 1 August 1989, arguing that his last d…

The appellant, Pratapbhai Hamirbai Solanki, was accused of conspiring to murder an RTI activist and was charged under Sections 302, 201 and 120‑B IPC and Sections 25(1)(b) and 27 of the Arms Act. Bail applications before the Sessions Court and the Gujarat High Court were rejected. After the High Court reserved its judg…

The respondents claimed ownership of land that had been recorded in the 1962 Record of Rights and later allotted to the Reserve Bank of India. They appealed to the Settlement Officer in 1990, filed a civil suit in 2003 (withdrawn in 2007 without permission to re‑file), and finally filed a writ petition in 2008 seeking …

The appeal arose from the appointment of Class IV staff in courts subordinate to the Delhi High Court on an ad‑hoc basis without proper advertisement, which the petitioners challenged as violative of Articles 14 and 16 of the Constitution. The Supreme Court examined whether such appointments could be regularised, wheth…

The Supreme Court addressed the protection of identity of victims of sexual offences, both adult and child, under IPC s.228A, CrPC s.327 and the POCSO Act. It held that no person may publish the victim's name or any detail that could lead to identification, and FIRs relating to such offences must not be placed in the p…

The appellants, Sanchit Bansal and another, challenged the Joint Admission Board's (JAB) method of fixing cut‑off marks for the IIT‑JEE 2006, alleging that the procedure was arbitrary, capricious and motivated by personal enmity, which led to the first appellant's disqualification despite a high aggregate score. The Hi…

The petitioner, Mis. Sunder Marketing Associates, entered into a joint venture (JV) with KJSL and won the highest bid for a mining lease in Haryana. After the JV was granted the lease, the partner KJSL sought to rescind the contract while the petitioner wished to continue, leading the State Government to transfer the l…

The Cellular Operators Association of India and other telecom service providers challenged the Telecom Consumers Protection (Ninth Amendment) Regulations, 2015, which required service providers to credit Rs 1 to the calling consumer for each call drop (up to three per day). The Delhi High Court upheld the regulations, …

The Central Information Commission (CIC) issued Management Regulations in 2007, including provisions to constitute benches and form committees for case management. The Delhi Development Authority (DDA) challenged these actions, and the Delhi High Court quashed the regulations, holding that the RTI Act did not expressly…

The bench examined several writ petitions challenging preventive detention orders at the pre‑execution stage. The petitioners argued that, under the Right to Information Act, 2005, a detenu should be furnished with the grounds of detention before arrest, and that the five exceptions laid down in Alka Subhash Gadia's ca…

The petitioners challenged the CBI's reliance on three documents that were allegedly taken without authorization from the Ministry of Defence and marked secret under the Official Secrets Act. The respondents argued that the review petition was untenable because the documents violated Sections 3 and 5 of the Official Se…

The petitioner, Kishan Chand Jain, filed a writ petition under Article 32 seeking directions that State Information Commissions (SICs) adopt hybrid or virtual hearings to reduce travel costs for applicants, especially from remote areas. The petition argued that such measures would further the legislative intent of the …

The appellant, Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE), rejected a student's request to inspect and re‑evaluate his evaluated answer‑books, invoking exemption under Section 8(1)(e) of the Right to Information (RTI) Act and its own bye‑laws. The student filed a writ petition seeking a declaration that the refusal wa…

The Punjab State Co-operative Milk Producers Federation Ltd. (the Federation) appealed against a Punjab and Haryana High Court order that granted its employees pay scales equivalent to Punjab government employees from 1 January 1986, despite the Federation having introduced revised pay scales only from 1 January 1994 d…

Maharashtra State Electricity Distribution Co. Ltd. (MSEDCL) appealed against the Maharashtra Electricity Regulatory Commission (MERC) and the Appellate Tribunal for Electricity (APTEL) which had ordered it to pay Late Payment Surcharge (LPS) to power generators based on the State Bank of India Prime Lending Rate (SBAR…

Rajmati Singh was appointed as an untrained assistant teacher in 1971 and was relieved in 1973 to undergo mandatory training, which she failed to complete, leading to the termination of her contractual employment in 1974. Over the next three decades she made repeated representations but never approached any judicial or…

The Supreme Court examined whether cooperative societies registered under the Kerala Co-operative Societies Act, 1969 are "public authorities" under Section 2(h) of the Right to Information Act, 2005 and thus bound to disclose information. The Court distinguished statutory bodies from bodies merely governed by statutes…

The Rajasthan State Electricity Board (RSEB) introduced a Contributory Provident Fund (CPF) scheme and, later, a Pension and General Provident Fund (GPF) scheme in 1988, requiring employees to choose between them within 90 days. Over the next eight years RSEB issued a series of notices extending the window for switchin…

The appellant, Sanjay Kumar Rai, was charged under Sections 504 and 506 IPC for allegedly threatening a journalist and sought discharge under Section 239 CrPC, claiming the investigation was biased and the complainant’s testimony unreliable. The Chief Judicial Magistrate rejected the discharge application, and the High…

The petitioners, owners of two flats in Mumbai, allowed the Police Department to occupy the premises temporarily in 1940 without any written requisition order. The police paid a nominal rent until 2007 and then stopped, prompting the petitioners to file a writ petition under Article 226 seeking possession of the flats.…

The appellant, convicted of culpable homicide amounting to murder for a 1994 incident, claimed he was a minor at the time of the offence, asserting a plea of juvenility under s.9(2) of the Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children) Act, 2015. Despite earlier courts treating him as an adult based on a bank‑accou…

The University advertised a post of Assistant Professor in Physical Education (Yoga Therapy) requiring a Post Graduate Diploma in Yoga or Yoga Therapy. Dr. Sridip Chatterjee applied with a Post Graduate Diploma in Yoga Education and was selected by a Selection Committee of subject experts, and later an Equivalence Comm…

The case concerns a candidate (Tirtha Sarathi Mukherjee) who failed to qualify for the Tripura Judicial Service examination and sought re‑evaluation of his answer scripts. His writ petition for re‑evaluation was dismissed in 2012, the Special Leave Petition was dismissed in 2013, and a review petition was filed after a…

The appellant Vijay Bahadur contested the election of Gram Pradhan in Chaka village, alleging a discrepancy of 19 votes between the Presiding Officer’s oral statement (1194 votes) and Form 46 (1213 votes) and claiming irregularities such as missing poll‑booth diaries and police interference. He filed an election petiti…

The complainant, Sadiq B. Hanchinmani, filed a private criminal complaint alleging that the accused had forged an e‑stamp rent agreement to illegally occupy his property and had committed offences under Sections 120B, 201, 419, 471, 468 and 420 IPC. The Judicial Magistrate First Class (JMFC) referred the matter to the …

The victim‑complainant alleged that she was raped by three accused on 29 November 2018 and filed an application under Section 156(3) of the CrPC seeking a direction to the police to register an FIR. The Chief Judicial Magistrate dismissed the application, citing a two‑year delay and inconsistencies in the complainant's…

The Chief Information Commissioner (CIC) directed the Gujarat High Court to provide certified copies of judicial documents to a third‑party applicant under the Right to Information Act, 2005 (RTI Act). The High Court, relying on Rule 151 of its own Rules, required the applicant to file an affidavit stating the purpose …

The Kerala Public Service Commission (PSC) was approached by examinees seeking, under the Right to Information Act, scanned copies of their answer sheets, the tabulation sheet containing interview marks, and the names of the examiners who evaluated their papers. The State Public Information Officer and the Appellate Au…

Khanapuram Gandaiah, involved in multiple civil suits over land, sought under the Right to Information Act, 2005, the reasons why a judicial officer (Respondent No.4) had dismissed his miscellaneous appeal, alleging judicial dishonesty. His RTI application under Section 6 was rejected, and subsequent appeals before the…

The petitioner filed an RTI application seeking the third respondent's service records, disciplinary memos, and details of his assets and gifts, most of which were contained in his income‑tax returns. The Central Information Commissioner (CIC) held that the requested information fell within the definition of "personal …

The Supreme Court reviewed its own September 2012 judgment that upheld Sections 12(5), 12(6), 15(5) and 15(6) of the Right to Information Act, 2005, on the ground that the earlier decision contained a manifest error of law. The Court held that the provisions merely require persons of eminence with wide knowledge and ex…

The Institute of Chartered Accountants of India (ICAI) conducted examinations for chartered accountants and was asked by Shaunak H. Satya, a failed candidate, to disclose the instructions, model answers and related materials given to examiners and moderators under the Right to Information Act, 2005 (RTI). The issues we…

The Supreme Court examined a writ petition filed by Suraz India Trust, which had repeatedly approached the Court with 64 public‑interest litigations and several contempt petitions, none of which resulted in any relief. The Court found that the Trust’s actions amounted to an abuse of the judicial process, wasting valuab…

Wing Commander Ashwini Kumar Handa, after being granted a two‑year study leave under Army Instructions 13/78, gave a Service Guarantee Certificate to serve nine years from his return. He served only 6 years 8 months before taking premature retirement on health grounds, and the government deducted the full pay and allow…

Nano Kumar Verma, a judicial officer, was first investigated for granting bail in a serious case; after offering explanations, the High Court accepted them and closed the proceedings. Despite this, the High Court later initiated fresh departmental proceedings on the same charges, reverted him to a lower post, and subse…

The appellant, B.N. John, owned a hostel for underprivileged children and alleged that officials raided it illegally on 3 June 2015, falsely accusing him of assaulting them. An FIR was lodged under IPC s.353, and a charge‑sheet later added s.186, leading the Chief Judicial Magistrate (CJM) to take cognizance and issue …