SC notice to registrar generals of high courts on RTI issue

Monday, February 8, 2010 17:05 IST


New Delhi: The Supreme Court today sought response from
Registrar Generals of all high courts on the issue of
providing information on appointment and transfer of
judges under the Right to Information Act.

"We need to have views of the Registrar Generals (RGs)
 of High Courts as they have been getting applications
on the issue," a bench comprising justiceB Sudershan Reddy
and justice SS Nijjar said while issuing notices to all the RGs.

The court was hearing the appeal filed by the Supreme Court
Registry challenging the directions passed against it by the
Central Information Commission (CIC) to disclose information
on judges appointment to the apex court by superseding seniors.

The apex court had also put on hold the operation of the CIC
order directing it to divulge communication between
 chief justice of India KG Balakrishnan and justice R Raghupathy
of Madras high court on alleged interference by a Union minister
 in a sub-judice matter.

The court has already issued notice to the RTI applicant on whose
plea the CIC has passed the orders.

Advocate Prashant Bhushan, appearing for the RTI applicant,
 had assailed the decision of the apex court for directly
moving before itself by sidelining the Delhi high court and
 said the Supreme Court, which favoured the transparency law
for others, is stepping back when it comes to itself sending
a wrong impression.

Attorney general GE Vahanvati had sought stay on the CIC's
direction saying several important questions of law arise in
 the matter which required urgent hearing. Bhushan had said
all major issues relating to the case was decided by the apex
 court in another matter.

The CIC, in a series of orders, has held that office of the
CJI comes within the purview of the RTI Act and information
held by the CJI should be revealed. However, Balakrishnan has
 consistently been maintaining that his office does not come
 under the ambit of the Act.

The Supreme Court had on December 1 moved before itself a
petition challenging the order of CIC which had directed it
 to divulge information relating to appointment of judges to
 the apex court and communication between CJI and justice Raghupathy.

The registry has assailed the CIC's order contending that the material
(information) held by the CJI was kept under fiduciary relationship and
should be exempted from being made public under Section 8(1)e of the
transparency law.

Interestingly, deviating from the normal practice which was adopted by
 it in an earlier case on the assets declaration issue, the apex court
this time sidelined the Delhi high court where appeals against the CIC's
order were filed.

The same legal issue on whether CJI's office comes within the ambit of RTI or
 not is pending before a full bench of the Delhi high court after a single judge
had rejected the apex court's plea that all the information with CJI cannot be
 revealed under RTI.