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| Attendance details can't be sought under RTI: SIC | | SMC Commissioner's order set aside | | Early Times Report
Srinagar, July 25: The State Information Commission (SIC) has held that the attendance detail is a personal information that can't be provided under Right to Information (RTI) Act.
The SIC made these observations while disposing an appeal filed against the order of Commissioner Srinagar Municipal Corporation (SMC) who had directed his Public Information Officer (PIO) to share details of attendance of a retired employee to an information seeker.
An RTI application was filed by one Deepak Koul on 20-11-2018 with the PIO, SMC, seeking information with regard to attendance report (month wise) with effect from 01-04-2017, leave details and also salary details of one Surinder Kumar Butt, who was working as Senior Building Inspector in Mechanical Division of the corporation.
The RTI applicant was informed by the PIO/Secretary, SMC, Srinagar vide communication No. SMC/Estb/Gen/8115-16 dated 11-12- 2018 that the information as sought by him was of personal nature and this could not be disclosed as per the directions passed by the Supreme Court of India in the matter of Girish R. Deshpande.
Aggrieved by the said communication of the PIO, the RTI applicant filed first appeal before the First Appellate Authority (FAA)/Commissioner, SMC, Srinagar on 29-01-2019 which was disposed of by the FAA vide order dated 03-09-2019 directing the PIO to provide the information to the RTI applicant within 20 days.
Aggrieved by the order of the FAA directing disclosure of information related to third party, the said third party namely Surinder Kumar Bhat filed the instant 2nd appeal before the SIC on 17-04-2019 praying for setting aside of the order of FAA dated 03-04-2019 and a direction to the PIO not to disclose the personal information of the third party (appellant herein) sought by the RTI applicant in his RTI application dated 20-11-2018.
The appeal came up for hearing before the Commission on 16-07-2019. Appellant along with his counsel was present. Reyaz Ahmad, Assistant Secretary (Planning) representing the PIO/Secretary, SMC, Srinagar was also present. He submitted that though the PIO rejected the RTI application of the information seeker Deepak Koul, but the FAA/ Commissioner, while disposing of the first appeal directed the PIO to provide the information to the information seeker within 20 days which has not been furnished to him in view of the pendency of the present 2nd appeal before the Commission.
"The law on the subject has been emphatically established by Hon'ble Supreme court in Girish Ramchandra Deshpande V/s Central Information Commission & Others - (2013) -1-SCC-212. The Hon'ble Apex Court held that the performance of an employee/officer in an organization is 4 primarily a matter between the employee and the employer and normally those aspects are governed by the service rules which fall under the expression personal information, the disclosure of which has no relationship to any public activity or public interest. On the other hand, the disclosure of same would cause unwarranted invasion of privacy of that individual. In his RTI request, the RTI applicant Mr. Deepak Koul had sought monthly attendance details of the Third party (applicant herein) w.e.f 01-04-2017," reads SIC order
The PIO refused the information to the RTI applicant Deepak Koul on the ground that such information was personal information of the third party and hence exempted from disclosure. However, the FAA/ Commissioner SMC vide his order dated 03-04-2019 directed the PIO to disclose the information of the third party to the RTI applicant.
The SIC's final order reads: "The Commission is of the view that attendance of an employee is a matter between the employee and his employer and governed by the service rules. Therefore, the present appeal is squarely covered by the judgment of Hon'ble Supreme court in Girish Ramchandra Deshpande case. Disclosure of information relating to the attendance details of the present appellant (third party) has no relationship to any public activity or public interest. Falling under the expression 'personal information', such information is exempted from disclosure under section 8 (1) (i) of the J&K RTI Act, 2009. Viewed thus, the order of FAA dated 03-04-2019 is set aside. The present appeal is disposed of accordingly." |
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