The Delhi High Court recently directed the Central Information Commission (CIC) to reconsider the case of a Chartered Accountant (CA) who was denied information under Right to Information (RTI) Act by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI)..The information related to the CA's inclusion in the list of Undesirable Contact Men (UCM) by the central agency. Justice Sachin Datta rejected the stand taken by the CBI that it was not required to disclose the information since it stands exempted by the government under RTI Act.The Court observed that Section 24(1) exempts intelligence and security organizations, including CBI, as per schedule II of the RTI Act, from the purview of the enactment but the proviso explicitly states that information related to allegations of corruption and human rights violations shall not be excluded from disclosure..In the present case, the Bench found that inclusion of the CA's name in the UCM list could have resulted in violation of his human rights.“Prima facie, this Court finds merit in the petitioner’s argument that the publication of his name, in the manner aforesaid, has resulted in a violation of human rights as the same has harmed his dignity and professional standing,” it said.In 2016, the CA had filed an RTI application seeking information regarding inclusion of his name in CBI’s UCM list. The central agency had then cautioned the government officials against dealing with, associating with, or accepting hospitality and gifts from individuals named in the UCM list.However, the CBI rejected the CA’s request for information. The CBI's decision was then upheld by the CIC in 2017, leading to the present case before High Court..Before the Court, the CA argued that the publication of the list had severely tarnished his reputation in society, causing irreparable harm to his dignity and professional standing. “Since the inclusion of his name in the UCM list has subjected him to public scrutiny and professional ostracization without due process, it constitutes an infringement of his human rights and dignity,” the Court was told..CBI conceded before the Court that it compiles and maintains UCM lists from time to time. It also accepted that a newspaper clipping showing names of some persons as UCM was uploaded on the CBI’s official website, which gave an official tinge to the same.Considering that inclusion of the CA's name in the UCM list had resulted in violation of his fundamental rights, the Court said the proviso to Section 24(1) of the RTI Act would be applicable to the case. However, it also found that the argument regarding the same was neither raised nor considered by the appellate authority..Thus, the Court remanded the matter to CIC. “In view thereof, the Court deems it appropriate to remand the matter to the Central Information Commission (CIC) for a fresh determination. The CIC is directed to reconsider the matter, specifically considering the aspect of human rights violation/s raised by the petitioner and determining whether the information sought falls within the exception carried out in the proviso to Section 24(1) of the RTI Act,” the Court ordered. .Advocates Dr. Amit George, Siddharth Garg and Suparna Jain appeared for the CA.Special Public Prosecutor Atul Guleria along with advocates Aryan Rakesh and Pankaj Kumar appeared for CBI.[Read Judgment]
