UNION OF INDIA Vs. SUBHASH CHANDRA AGARWAL

JUDGEMENT

(1.) This writ petition seeks to assail that part of an order dated 07.09.2012, passed by the Central Information Commission (CIC) whereby, a direction has been issued to the petitioner /Ministry of Finance to appoint one CPIO for the Ministry of Finance or in the alternative to nominate any one of the CPIOs, who are presently functioning, as such, in the various departments under the Ministry of Finance as the CPIO for the Ministry of Finance. In other words, the purport of the direction issued is that the Ministry of Finance should have in place only one CPIO notwithstanding the fact that it has several departments functioning within its fold.

(2.) This order came to be passed in the background of the fact that, the respondent evidently had filed an application with the Ministry of Finance, Government of India, to seek information with regard to a newspaper item which got published in the Hindustan Times, on 16.03.2010, depicting therein, that the then Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh, was presented with a garland made of thousand rupee currency notes.

(3.) Apparently, this application was returned on the ground that there was no CPIO, appointed for the Ministry of Finance.